Zbigniew Rau made the statement in Luxembourg on Monday, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
Poland’s top diplomat spoke to the media following a meeting of European Union foreign ministers “on the situation in Israel and in the region.”
Rau said that, during the talks, some EU foreign ministers had “positioned themselves very firmly on the Palestinian side,” in the Israel-Hamas conflict, while others had adopted “a very pro-Israeli stance.”
He added that, according to the EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, the challenge posed for the European bloc by the Israel-Hamas conflict was “comparable to that posed by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine,” while its consequences could “spread beyond the Middle East.”
Poland’s foreign minister said that the EU's top diplomats had agreed on the need for “humanitarian aid for Gaza," condemned "Hamas’ terrorist attack” on Israel, and “confirmed that Israel has the right to defend itself,” in accordance with international humanitarian law.
Rau stressed “the need to distinguish between Palestinians and Hamas terrorists,” adding that the million Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip “are hostages to this terrorist organisation.”
He added there were concerns the Israel-Hamas conflict could spread “to the West Bank, for instance,” which would mean “an influx of Palestinian refugees to Jordan and new volunteers for Hamas.”
The Polish foreign minister said that if the situation escalated into a full-blown land conflict, it would “become ever more difficult to contain,” the PAP news agency reported.
New EU sanctions against Russia?
Rau told reporters that Monday’s meeting also focused on the next package of sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.
He said that over the next 14 days, the EU’s executive Commission would collect proposals of new punitive measures from member states, adding that the process of adopting a new round of sanctions against Russia “could take about a dozen weeks.”
Earlier this month, the Polish government reiterated its proposal to ban Russian diamonds, as well as calling for an embargo on the import of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and ICT services from Russia, and for the sanctioning of more Russian individuals and entities, according to PAP.
EU military support for Ukraine
Meanwhile, EU foreign ministers on Monday failed to agree on EUR 500 million in new funding for Ukraine’s war effort against the Russian invasion, due to opposition from Hungary, public broadcaster Polish Radio’s IAR news agency reported.
The bloc’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, had called for “quick decisions” in the matter, saying the EU should provide Ukraine with EUR 20 billion in military assistance between 2024 and 2027, according to officials.
Under Borrell’s plan, the EU would support Ukraine with EUR 5 billion a year, starting in January, the IAR news agency reported.
Tuesday is day 608 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, launching the largest military campaign in Europe since World War II.
(pm/gs)
Source: IAR, PAP, consilium.europa.eu
Click on the audio player above for a report by Radio Poland's Michał Owczarek.
