Borrell accuses Katz of being “not well informed” for his criticism of the lack of EU sanctions against Iran

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Confirms efforts for a new meeting of the contact group for Gaza in New York and advocates for the inclusion of new international actors

13 (EUROPA PRESS)

The European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Policy, Josep Borrell, has accused Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz of being “not well informed” after he criticised the EU for not joining sanctions against Iran.

“The minister is not well informed or he does not care about not being well informed. Just last week we proposed to the Council to discuss an additional proposal for sanctions against Iran,” Borrell said at a press conference from the European Parliament office in Spain.

The top representative of EU diplomacy has responded in this way to Katz, who hours earlier had published a post on his social networks in which he denounced that “instead of pressuring the EU to join the sanctions against Iran, Borrell supports the establishment of a Palestinian terrorist state.”

The Israeli minister also pointed out that Borrell’s “legacy” is nothing more than “anti-Semitism and hatred towards Israel.” Along with these criticisms, Katz has attached an image generated by Artificial Intelligence in which Borrell can be seen on the lap of the Iranian Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

In this regard, Borrell recalled the words of former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who said that “as soon as you argue with the Israeli government in power and you do not agree 90 percent of its positions, you are automatically accused of anti-Semitism.”

“That word should not be devalued (…) Accusing anyone who disagrees with a government’s position of being anti-Semitic makes no sense. I am disgusted by anti-Semitism and the Jewish people have been subject to persecution. I am not going to bother refuting this kind of qualification that falls by its own weight,” he concluded.

The war in the Middle East broke out after the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) launched an offensive against Israel on October 7, 2023, which left nearly 1,200 dead and 240 hostages, and prompted the bloody Israeli response in the Gaza Strip, which has already claimed more than 41,000 lives.

Iran plays an important role in this context, being one of Hamas’s main allies, and has even opened new fronts against Israel, launching attacks on its territory. On the other hand, Tehran is accused of supplying arms to Moscow in its war against kyiv, which has led to sanctions from several Western powers.

GAZA CONTACT GROUP MEETING

The High Representative also noted that this Friday he attended the meeting of the Arab-Islamic Contact Group for Gaza in Madrid as an observer. The meeting was attended by the Palestinian Prime Minister, Mohamed Mustafa, as well as representatives from Norway and Slovenia.

Borrell stressed that his participation in the meeting was exclusively as an observer, as the European Union has different positions regarding the two-state solution as a response to the crisis in the Middle East, and the recognition of the Palestinian State is “a national prerogative” of each EU member.

Borrell stressed that this meeting has served to “keep alive” the path to a two-state solution as a way out of the conflict, although he acknowledged that “many steps still need to be taken” to achieve this objective, which should begin with a ceasefire that, for the moment, does not seem plausible in the short term.

In this context, the top representative of EU diplomacy has acknowledged that a new meeting is planned in the American city of New York on the occasion of the United Nations General Assembly at the end of the month.

Looking ahead to this meeting, Borrell has acknowledged that “it would be good” for the contact group to include new actors who “represent international concern for Palestine.”

In this regard, he highlighted countries such as Chile, which has maintained a strong stance regarding the conflict in the Middle East, and Canada, which recently suspended arms exports to Israel.