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Publication |

Recognition of Palestine Statehood

Greens/EFA motion for a resolution

Tabled by Tamas Meszerics, Margrete Auken, Bodil Ceballos, Bart Staes, Alyn Smith, Igor Solteš, Ernest Urtasun, Molly Scott Cato, Davor Škrlec, Karima Delli, Jill Evans, Jordi Sebastia, Josep-Maria Terricabras, Ernest Maragall, Keith Taylor, Pascal Durand, Bronis Ropė, Judith Sargentini, Eva Joly, Yannick Jadot, Klaus Buchner, Philippe Lamberts on behalf of the Greens/EFA Group The European Parliament –     having regard to its previous resolutions on the Israel/Palestine conflict, including that of 29 September 2011 on the situation in Palestine and of 22 November 2012 on the situation in Gaza, –     having regard to the conclusions of the EU Foreign Affairs Council on the Middle East of 17 November 2014, -       having regard to the statements by the EU High Representative Frederica Mogherini on the situation in Israel and Palestine, including of 15, 17 and 18 November 2014, -       having regard to the “Non-paper based on Member States inputs on possible follow-up on East Jerusalem” prepared by the European External Action Service, as leaked to the media in November 2014, -       having regard to the decision by the Swedish government to recognize the State of Palestine on 30 October 2014, as well as the earlier recognition of Palestine by Cyprus, Czech Republic, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Romania and Slovakia, -       having regard to the non-binding resolutions recently adopted by the UK House of Commons, the Irish Senate, the Spanish Parliament and the French National Assembly on the recognition of the State of Palestine, -       having regard to UN Security Council resolutions on the Israel-Palestine conflict, notably resolutions 242, 446 and 1515 -       having regards to UN General Assembly resolution 67/19 of 29 November 2012, –     having regard to the UN Human Rights Conventions to which Israel and Palestine are States Parties, -       having regard to the Arab Peace Initiative adopted in March 2002 by the Council of the League of Arab States, -       having regard to Rule 123(2) of its Rules of Procedure, A.    Whereas 135 States out of the 193 UN member states have extended diplomatic recognition to the State of Palestine; B.     Whereas the EU has repeatedly recognized the Palestinian right to self-determination, including through statehood, which is “not subject to any veto”, as stated in the Council Conclusions of March 1999, C.     Whereas Palestine was recognized as non-member observer state by the United Nations on 29 November 2012, D.    Whereas negotiations for a comprehensive settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict were suspended sine die in April 2014 and have limited prospects of resumption within the parameters of the USA-led Oslo peace process; E.     Whereas the Israeli government has accelerated land annexation and settlement expansion in occupied Palestinian territories, including with the largest land grab in 30 years announced in late August 2014; F.      Whereas continued occupation and related humiliation and violations are sources of profound resentment and suffering among the subjugated Palestinian population; G.    Whereas the latest events in East Jerusalem in relation to the al-Aqsa mosque pose a serious risk of further sectarian violence and regional destabilization, and underline the critical importance to uphold the status quo on the custodianship of the holy sites; H.    Whereas over 100 Israeli retired and reserve generals and senior security officials have signed a plea to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu calling for a regional-based two state diplomatic resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; I.       Whereas over 1.000 prominent Israeli public figures, including former ministers, parliamentarians and artists, have recently called on European parliamentarians to formally recognize the State of Palestine; J.       Whereas the assault by the Israeli military on the Gaza Strip launched on 8th July 2014 led to an unprecedented level of devastation and casualties in the enclave; whereas the cease-fire reached on 26 August has not been implemented, notably with regards the lifting of the blockade, K.    Whereas a Palestinian unity government endorsed by Hamas and Fatah was established in April 2014, accepting the Quartet principles of non-violence, adherence to past agreements and the recognition of Israel, and supported by the USA and the EU; L.     Whereas the President of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmud Abbas has stated his intention to set a timetable through the United Nations to end Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory within three years; whereas the Arab League has supported this plan of action and called for an international conference aiming to seek a final settlement on the basis of the Arab Peace Initiative; M.   Whereas an evaluation of the EU's cooperation with the Occupied Palestinian territory and support to the Palestinian people, carried out on behalf of the European Commission in May 2014, concluded that the current cooperation paradigm had reached its limits in the absence of a parallel political track by the EU to address the obstacles posed by the Israeli occupation and settlement policies and the political division of the West Bank and Gaza; N.    Whereas previous experiences of successful conflict resolution of Member States of the European Union, notably the Northern Ireland peace process, would enable the European Union to play a leading role in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by utilizing both the institutional and political solutions developed during previous conflicts; 1.      Urges all EU Member States to unconditionally recognize the State of Palestine on the 1967 borders, 2.      Firmly believes that European-wide recognition of the State of Palestine will advance the prospects for peace and encourage efforts, including by Israeli civil society, to secure a negotiated two-state resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; 3.      Welcomes the recent recognition of Palestinian statehood by the government of Sweden; welcomes the subsequent adoption, with overwhelming majorities, of resolutions by the French, Spanish, Irish and British legislative bodies urging their respective governments to follow suit; 4.      Is gravely alarmed by the recent escalation of violence in Jerusalem and unequivocally condemns all acts of violence against civilians committed by either side; recognizes the right of both Israel and Palestine to live in safety within their recognized borders; calls for a de-escalation of the situation, which risks engulfing the entire region; insists on ensuring accountability for all crimes committed against civilians; 5.      Underlines that the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories undermines rather than preserves the security of Israel and that the lack of progress towards a negotiated two-state solution only leads to further violence and bloodshed; 6.      Strongly condemns the continued expansion of Israeli settlements which runs counter to international law, fuels Palestinian resentment and undermines the viability and prospects of the two-state solution; calls on the Israeli authorities to immediately halt and revert its settlement policy, including plans for forced displacement of Bedouin populations; 7.      Condemns the attacks on Israeli citizens by Hamas and other militant groups, which have to stop; 8.      Stresses that respect for international human rights and humanitarian law by all parties and in all circumstances remains an essential precondition for achieving a just and lasting peace; underlines the particular responsibility under international law of Israel, as the occupying power, to comply with international humanitarian and human rights law; 9.      Calls on the EU to fulfill its responsibilities as an influential player and to take a bold and comprehensive peace initiative for the region notably on the basis of the Arab Peace Initiative; calls on the EU to develop a greenfield approach to its current engagement policy with the key actors in the region in order to give itself the means to carry out an ambitious peace agenda; 10.  Calls on the EU institutions and Member States to take steps to protect the viability of the two-state solution and to create a positive dynamic towards genuine peace negotiations; in this regard, calls on the EU to respond to the continued expansion of Israeli settlements by:

a.       stepping up EU public diplomacy,

b.      reassessing cooperation assistance to Israel in line with the “less for less policy”,

c.       strictly excluding the application of EU-Israeli agreements to the occupied Palestinian territories,

d.      strengthening advice to EU citizens and companies on settlements and settlement activities and taking action vis-à-vis EU companies complicit in violations in the settlements,

e.       taking concrete measures towards settlers, including the adoption of a non-contact policy and visa ban,

f.       excluding settlement products from the EU internal market,

g.      revisiting EU-Israeli relations in light of Article 2 of the Association Agreement;

11.  Calls on the EU to continue providing support to Palestinian statehood through state building programmes and supporting its application to international organizations, including the International Criminal Court, as well as to intensify its support to civil society; 12.  Decides to launch an initiative of “Parliamentarians for Peace” aiming to bring together European, Israeli and Palestinian parliamentarians to help advance an agenda for peace and to complement EU diplomatic efforts; 13.  Calls on all parties to effectively implement the terms reached under the August 2014 cease-fire agreement; in particular, urges Israeli authorities to immediately, unconditionally and completely lift the illegal blockade of the Gaza Strip; 14.  Welcomes the encouraging steps towards inter-Palestinian reconciliation and the formation of a technocratic government, achieved prior to the Israeli military offensive in August 2014; calls on all Palestinian forces to resume efforts towards reconciliation; denounces attempts to undermine this potentially historical process and calls on the Israeli authorities to release all those arrested since 12 June 2014 or charge them with a recognized criminal offense; 15.  Decides to carry out a report on the trade in arms and other security equipment between EU Member States and Israel/Palestine, and the compatibility of such trade with the EU Common Position; calls for a comprehensive UN arms embargo to all parties in the region in order to prevent further violations of international humanitarian law and human rights; 16.  Decides to send an ad hoc delegation to Gaza/Palestine and to Israel in order to assess the situation on the ground and the prospects for a sustainable solution to the conflict; 17.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the UN Secretary-General, the Quartet Envoy to the Middle East, the Israeli Government, the Knesset, the President of the Palestinian Authority, the Palestinian Legislative Council and the Euro-Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly bodies.

Responsible MEPs

Margrete Auken
Margrete Auken
Member
Klaus Buchner
Klaus Buchner
Member
Karima Delli
Karima Delli
Member
Pascal Durand
Pascal Durand
Vice-President
Jill Evans
Jill Evans
Member
Yannick Jadot
Yannick Jadot
Member
Eva Joly
Eva Joly
Member
Philippe Lamberts
Philippe Lamberts
Co-President
Ernest Maragall
Ernest Maragall
Tamás Meszerics
Tamás Meszerics
Member
Bronis Ropė
Bronis Ropė
Member
Judith Sargentini
Judith Sargentini
Member
Molly Scott Cato
Molly Scott Cato
Vice-President
Davor Skrlec
Davor Skrlec
Member
Heather Anderson
Heather Anderson
Member
Igor Šoltes
Igor Šoltes
Member
Bart Staes
Bart Staes
Member
Keith Taylor
Keith Taylor
Member
Josep Maria Terricabras
Josep Maria Terricabras
EFA President and first Vice President of the Greens/EFA Group
Ernest Urtasun
Ernest Urtasun
Vice-President
Bodil Valero
Bodil Valero
Vice-President

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