In addition to Pedro Sánchez, the Frenchman was present Emmanuel Macronthe Italian one Giorgia Melonithe German Friedrich Merzthe Hungarian Viktor Orbánthe Greek Kyriakos Mitsotakisthe Cypriot Nikos Christodoulidesand the president of the European Council, Antonio Costa.
The inflation of European leaders at the signing ceremony contrasts with the absolute marginalization of the EU in the previous phase of preparation of the Gaza plan by the US. Brussels has also been totally absent in the mediation between the Government of Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas, led by the US, Qatar, Türkiye and Egypt itself.
Las deep internal divisions between the Member States closest to the Palestinian cause, such as Spain or Ireland, and those that have remained on Israel’s side until the end, such as Germany, Italy or Hungary, have condemned the EU to a irrelevant rolewithout any capacity to influence the conflict.
“It’s a shame. Our fault: there is no coherent EU position or strategy on the issue, but 27 dwarfs talking separately and wondering why no one is paying attention to them,” wrote the president of the Munich Security Conference Foundation, Wolfgang Ischinger.
In fact, Trump’s 20-point peace plan caught the Europeans off guard, who were just preparing their first package of sanctions against Netanyahu. Now, the foreign ministers of the 27 must decide what they do with him during their next meeting on October 20. In all probability, trade punishment of Israel will be shelved forever.
Once Trump’s plan is underway, Europeans do not want their role to be limited to paying the bills and finance the reconstruction of Gaza, but they demand a voice and a vote. For this reason, they have asked for a seat in the new international transitional body for Gaza.
The also called Peace Council will be headed by the US president himself “along with other members and heads of state to be announced later, including the former prime minister Tony Blair“, according to the plan.
“We believe that Europe has an important role to play and that we should be part of it“said the Commission’s Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Anouar El Anouni, who has not clarified what steps Brussels is taking to convince Trump.
The European Union has also offered to reactivate its civil mission at the Rafah crossingon the border of Gaza and Egypt. “This mission will allow the parties to reopen the border crossing for the transit into and out of Gaza of the people agreed upon by the parties, including those who need medical attention and their companions.”
The opening of the Rafah crossing, which was initially scheduled for Wednesday, has already suffered a first delay, although it could materialize this Thursday. Brussels is also ready to unfreeze its other mission on the ground, EUPOL COPPS, which provides support to the Palestinian police.
However, Member States are divided over sending troops for the International Stabilization Force foreseen in Trump’s plan, which in theory should be deployed “immediately” in Gaza. While Italy and Spain are considering sending soldiers, Germany has ruled it out.
In terms of money, the EU is the largest donor of humanitarian aid to Palestine, with more than €500 million since October 2023, and with the recent creation of a group of donors that will “drive political support for a viable future governance of a Palestinian state.”
In addition, Brussels has budgeted 1.6 billion in financial assistance to the Palestinian Authority for the years 2025-2027. The goal is to “keep the Palestinian Authority functioning and thus keep alive the prospect of a two-state solution.”
The US peace plan relegates the Palestinian Authority to a secondary role and foresees that Gaza “will be governed by a provisional transitional government formed by a technocratic and apolitical Palestinian committee”, which will be supervised by this Peace Council international with Trump and Blair.
“As the European Union, we would like to see a more prominent role for the Palestinian Authority and clearer steps towards a political horizon for the creation of a Palestinian State“says the spokesperson.
Although the Palestinian state appears as an aspiration in Trump’s plan, Netanyahu has reiterated his frontal opposition in recent days, while the US president himself does not commit to anything.
“A lot of people like the one-state solution. Some people like the two-state solution. We’ll see. I haven’t commented on it,” Trump said.