EU Ministers Discuss Possible Trade Measures on West Bank Settlements but Reach No Decision

European Union foreign ministers met in Brussels on 13 July 2026 to discuss possible sanctions on Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. The European Commission drafted a paper outlining three approaches: an import licensing system, prohibitive tariffs, or an outright ban.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas stated that everybody agrees the situation in the West Bank is really intolerable.

She added that developments there are making a two-state solution more and more impossible. A senior EU diplomat told Reuters that the meeting would allow discussion of the options and provide a picture of where member states stand. Diplomats said they did not expect any formal decision on a specific measure.

The session was intended to test whether sufficient support exists to proceed. A trade ban would require a qualified majority of at least 15 states representing 65 percent of the EU population, according to diplomats. The commission paper suggested that a ban might instead need unanimous approval from all 27 members.

Spain, Ireland and Belgium have called for severe sanctions, while Germany and Italy remain undecided. Ireland, the Netherlands and Spain have already imposed their own trade restrictions on goods from the settlements. Twenty of the EU’s 27 member states, led by France and Sweden, had previously urged the commission to prepare proposals for trade restrictions.

Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967, and more than 500,000 Israeli settlers live there among about three million Palestinians, excluding occupied East Jerusalem. In a July 2024 advisory opinion, the International Court of Justice stated that the occupation and settlements are illegal and that states should prevent trade or investment relations that help maintain the situation.

Israel rejects the view that the settlements are illegal and regards the territory as disputed.