European Trade Justice Coalition (ETJC) | 14 July 2025
Open Letter: Suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement!
To: High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission Kaja Kallas
CC:
President of European Council António Costa
President of the European Commission Ursula Von Der Leyen
President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola
Danish Presidency of the Council of the European Union
Subject: Urgent Call to Suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement and End Trade and Cooperation with Israel
Dear Ms. Kaja Kallas,
We, the undersigned members of the European Trade Justice Coalition, write to you with great urgency and deep concern regarding the European Union’s ongoing trade and political cooperation with the State of Israel, in light of the continuing genocide in Gaza and Israel’s long-standing violations of international law.
As the European Union is Israel’s largest trading partner—accounting for approximately 30% of its total trade— the EU has significant potential economic and political influence to end impunity and prevent further atrocities. We therefore call for the immediate suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement, a halt to all trade in goods and services that contribute to Israel’s illegal occupation and apartheid regime, and the imposition of sanctions against Israel.
This call is grounded in the EU’s own legal obligations under international law, including customary international law, the UN Genocide Convention, and the July 2024 ruling of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which held that third-party states and institutions are legally required not to recognize, aid, or assist in any situation created by unlawful occupation or acts of genocide.
All EU Member States are party to the Genocide Convention and are therefore bound to take all lawful measures to prevent genocide. This includes the withholding or suspension of all forms of assistance—economic, political, and military—particularly where such assistance could be seen as contributing to the ongoing crimes.
The EU-Israel Association Agreement, which entered into force in 2000, is clear on its human rights clause (Article 2) in declaring that respect for human rights and democratic principles constitutes an “essential element” of the agreement. Although, over the past decades, and particularly in the context of the ongoing genocide in Gaza, the Israeli government has continuously violated these principles. These violations include illegal settlement expansion, forced displacement of Palestinian populations, denial of Palestinian self-determination, and now, according to multiple international reports and experts, acts of genocide in Gaza that have resulted in over 57,000 deaths, many more missing, and the mass starvation of the civilian population.
Despite these grave breaches of international law, the EU has failed to act decisively. Preferential trade access, continued cooperation in research and development through Horizon Europe, and political normalization not only reinforce Israel’s actions—they are making the EU complicit in crimes under international law. As UN experts stated in September 2024, states must “cancel or suspend economic relationships, trade agreements and academic relations with Israel that may contribute to its unlawful presence and apartheid regime in the occupied Palestinian territory.”
Following the recent review of the EU-Israel Association Agreement which found that Israel is in breach of the human rights clause of the Agreement, there can only be one logical option – suspension of the Agreement in full.
Now is the time for immediate suspension. Anything less is complicity.
Therefore, we urgently call on you, President Kallas, to take decisive action by leading the EU to:
- Immediately suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement, in accordance with Article 2 of the Agreement and Article 60 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties;
- Impose an EU-wide embargo on arms, military technology, and dual-use materials to Israel, in line with the EU Common Position on arms exports and the Arms Trade Treaty;
- Cease all trade and cooperation, including in the areas of research, technology, and security, that contribute to Israel’s illegal occupation and apartheid regime including Horizon Europe and Innovation Programme;
- Establish accountability mechanisms for EU institutions and Member States that fail to meet their obligations under international law;
- Suspend Israel’s participation in cultural, academic, and sporting events within the EU.
Failing to act places the European Union on the wrong side of history. Words are no longer enough. The time for meaningful action is now.
We urge you to uphold the EU’s values and legal obligations and to move from rhetoric to resolute action. Suspend the agreement. Stop trade with apartheid. Act now.
Sincerely,
The European Trade Justice Coalition
The European Trade Justice Coalition is the network of more than 50 organisations from across Europe campaigning for trade that works for people and planet. Our coalition is made up of organisations working on economic justice, climate, environment, development and human rights, women’ s and farmers’ organisations, and national platforms for trade campaigning.