In a signal of displeasure with Israeli policies, the European Community’s legislative body last week narrowly approved a financial aid package for the Jewish state but urged a freeze on the funds, pending an improvement of human rights practices in the administered territories.
The aid, in the form of a $105 million European Investment Bank loan, was bound by conditions.
The European Parliament, which is based in Strasbourg, France, urged “with insistence” that the assistance be withheld as long as human rights practices in the territories do not improve and the pertinent U.N. Security Council resolutions are not implemented.
The parliament adopted a related resolution asking the European Commission, the E.C.’s executive arm, to monitor economic aid to Israel to make sure it is not used to finance its settlement policy, which the E.C. has repeatedly condemned.
Abel Matutes of Spain, the European commissioner in charge of Mediterranean policy, promised to “take account” of the parliament’s recommendations.
In any event, Israel fared better than Syria and Morocco. The parliament rejected the financial protocols with those countries because of their poor human rights records.
Action on Algeria was postponed because of the political turmoil there. But aid to Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan was approved with large majorities.
The Jan. 16 vote for Israeli aid was 266-84, with 23 abstentions. Parliamentary approval requires a minimum of 260 votes in the 518-member legislature.
Israel squeaked by with the votes of Liberals and Christian Democrats. The 180-member Socialist bloc, the largest in the Parliament, was split. British Laborites, German Social Democrats, the Greens and leftist groups were opposed. The number of abstentions was unusually high.
The parliament’s influential Political Affairs Committee added a disavowal. It said financial aid to Israel in no way should be considered an expression of unconditional support for Israeli government policies.
In 1988, the European Parliament blocked an earlier financial cooperation protocol with Israel for six months because Israel would not allow the direct the export of Palestinian-produced agricultural goods to the European market.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
