The EU states assure Israel of their “full solidarity” at the EU summit and agree on new sanctions against Iran.
The EU will “take further restrictive measures against Iran, especially regarding drones and missiles,” said the summit statement, released on Thursday evening. The summit called on all parties to exercise “the utmost restraint”. Chancellor Karl Nehammer (ÖVP) said Tehran must receive a clear signal that “this level of escalation leads to a dead end.” “Iran is a threat not only to Israel, but also to the stability of the region,” said EU Council President Charles Michel. The motto is therefore: “We must isolate Iran.”
Drone and rocket manufacturers in the crosshairs
The formal decision on the new punitive measures is likely to take place at the EU Council of Foreign Ministers on Monday. French President Emmanuel Macron tried to set the tone before the start of the summit by making a concrete proposal for sanctions. Accordingly, Iranian drone and missile manufacturers should be subject to punitive measures. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was less specific: “We have already taken many steps to sanction Iran,” he explained before the start of the summit.
On whether the Iranian Revolutionary Guards should also be classified as a terrorist organization, Scholz said: “Sanctions lists already exist for these forces. The question now is whether we can take another step.”
“The European Council strongly condemns the Iranian attack on Israel and reiterates its full solidarity with the Israeli people and its commitment to Israel’s security and regional stability,” the latest draft conclusions said. Iran and its allies such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen are called on to “cease all attacks, exercise extreme restraint and refrain from anything that could increase tensions in the region.”
Call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza
EU Heads of State and Government also discussed the situation in the Gaza Strip: the EU Summit confirmed that it would continue to work with its partners to “end the crisis in Gaza”, including an immediate ceasefire, unconditional release of all hostages and the rapid and unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid to the suffering Palestinian civilian population.
“The European Union remains committed to a lasting and sustainable peace based on the two-state solution,” the report continued.
Source: Krone
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