Friends of Israel are surprised and disappointed by the Middle East declaration issued at the European Economic Community (EEC) Summit conference in Brussels. They had been led to expect that under the present chairmanship of West Germany, the EEC Council of Ministers would modify the harsh attitude adopted toward Israel, particularly after the war in Lebanon last summer.
But the declaration endorsed by the 10 EEC heads of State Tuesday went beyond even the Venice declaration of June, 1980 which Israel found unacceptable. The European leaders are calling now for implementation of the right of the Palestinian people to self determination “with all that this implies.”
Their condemnation of Israel’s policies is sharper than ever and implicitly charges that Israel is not ready for “genuine” peace negotiations on the basis of UN Security Council resolutions 242 and 338. The EEC, moreover, strongly affirmed its position that Israeli settlements in the occupied territories are “contrary to international law and a major and growing obstacle to peace efforts.”
Only three months ago, Erik Blumenfeld, a member of the Parliament of Europe representing the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), West Germany’s ruling party, had assured Israelis in public interviews that under German chairmanship, EEC measures taken against Israel after its invasion of Lebanon would be rescinded.
Blumenfeld, who is chairman of the German-Israel Friendship Association, appeared to be speaking for Chancellor Helmut Kohl who is a close personal friend and political associate.
Now, friends of Israel concede there is little chance if any that the sanctions against Israel will be withdrawn while Bonn holds the rotating chairmanship of the EEC. Those measures include the freeze of a financial protocol that would provide Israel with access to EEC financial institutions and the suspension of all negotiations between the EEC and Israel.
The declaration issued at Brussels was defined officially as “European Council conclusions on the Middle East.” They are binding on the 10 member states as policy guidelines. Diplomats here say West Germany had proposed a much more balanced declaration at Brussels but was overruled by its EEC partners.
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