Europe must remember that Israel is under constant threat from Iran when it criticizes us, Foreign Minister Yair Lapid told European Union foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday.
“I accept that part of our dialogue is a moral judgment,” he said. “I want to hear your opinions with an open mind. But it is not too much to expect that this dialogue will take into consideration that my home is under attack.”Lapid called Iran “the No. 1 exporter of terrorism in the world, which never gave up on its ambition to attain a nuclear weapon and never hid who its target is for that weapon: Us. Israel.”
Iran backs Hezbollah in Lebanon to the north and Hamas in the Gaza Strip to the south, he said.
Hamas uses Gazans as human shields, Lapid said, but that “does not exempt us from the responsibility to always try to minimize harm to civilians.”
EU High Commissioner for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell invited Lapid to speak before the Foreign Affairs Council, making him the first Israeli to address the forum that determines the EU’s foreign policy since Tzipi Livni did so more than a decade ago.
Lapid called for recalibrating relations between Israel and the EU. There could be a new start with a new government, he said.
Israel and the EU share common values, Lapid said, including “human rights, rights for the LGBT community, a commitment to the basic components of democracy – a free press, independent judiciary, a strong civil society and freedom of religion” – and “fighting together against climate change, international terrorism, racism and extremism.”
“I believe in the life force of liberal democracy,” he said. “In their economic force. In the force of their ideas to create a better world. Optimism is political power. I want to work together on that, on the chance for a better future.”
Lapid praised the Abraham Accords and expressed hope that after inaugurating the Israeli Embassy in the United Arab Emirates two weeks ago, in the coming weeks and months he will do the same in Morocco, Bahrain and Sudan.
“Something good is happening between us and the moderates in the Arab world,” he said. “I want to broaden the circle of peace to additional states.” Israel would like that circle to include the Palestinians, Lapid said, expressing support for a two-state solution. “Unfortunately, there is no possibility at the moment,” he said. “There is one thing we need to remember. If there will be a Palestinian state, it needs to be a peace-seeking democracy... You cannot ask us to build with our own hands another threat to our lives.” We can ensure that steps taken now do not prevent peace in the future and will improve the Palestinians’ lives, Lapid said, adding that he is in favor of “everything humanitarian… everything that builds the Palestinian economy.” Among Lapid’s goals for the visit were to push for the Israel-EU Association Council to reconvene. The Association Council is meant to ensure dialogue and improved ties between the parties. It has not met since 2012, with some member states blocking it in protest over Operation Protective Edge in 2014, then settlements and other policies toward the Palestinians. Borrell has been in favor of restarting it for nearly a year. Lapid also seeks to advance new Israel-EU partnerships, such as having Israel join the €1.46 billion Euro Creative Europe culture and arts program, EuroPol for policing and security and ensuring that negotiations over Horizon Europe, the scientific research program Israel has long participated in, go well.The foreign minister received positive responses to inquiries about the partnerships and plans to take concrete action toward forging them. Lapid met with Borrell one-on-one on Sunday, and they discussed EU-Israel bilateral ties. The Foreign Ministry’s statement on the meeting emphasized talks about economic ties. “They discussed the importance of enhancing EU-Israel relations and considered how to address together existing challenges in order to achieve this common goal,” an EU statement said. They also spoke about “how the dialogue with the Palestinians can be moved forward.” Lapid then met with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, Dutch Foreign Minister Sigrid Kaag and Czech Foreign Minister Jakub Kulhánek. Lapid met with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg ahead of his meeting with the FAC and invited him to visit Israel. Israel seeks to deepen its cooperation with NATO in intelligence, cybersecurity, missile defense and other areas, Lapid said. Israel and NATO share values and a view of broad challenges and threats, he told Stoltenberg.