Following weeks of negotiations, MPs from the 5 parties that make up Belgium’s federal coalition government have agreed on the contents of a resolution on the Gaza conflict.
On Tuesday evening the government that had split on the issue agreed on a joint resolution on the Gaza conflict. The resolution calls on the government to "actively" support the French President as a state. President Macron plans to push for Western recognition of Palestine at a UN conference in New York in early June, if a number of Arab countries also recognise Israel.
The Flemish nationalist party N-VA says that the resolution states that recognition of Palestine will not be possible until the Israeli hostages in Gaza are released, Hamas is dismantled, a democratic Palestinian leadership is elected, and the borders of its territory are clearly demarcated. As the conflict is still ongoing, these conditions mean that Belgian recognition is unlikely in the short term.
Support for ICC
The text of the resolution doesn’t take a position on whether Israeli violence in Gaza constitutes genocide. However, it does support the Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot's (Francophone centrist) intention to take part in the trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. The resolution also calls on the government to enforce the ICC's rulings. This contradicts a statement made earlier this year by Prime Minister Bart De Wever.
Regarding sanctions, the resolution calls for the EU to strengthen sanctions against settlers in the West Bank and to “critically reassess” cooperation with Israel on the basis of a formal review of the EU-Israel Association Agreement. The resolution also calls on the government to lobby at European level for a trade ban on products from illegal colonist settlements.
The resolution is due to be debated at Thursday's plenary session of the Federal Parliament. A final vote in Parliament is expected by the end of May.