A fresh diplomatic crisis has erupted between the European Union and Israel after Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar announced that he has suspended all contacts with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, accusing her of spreading what he described as a “calumny” against the Jewish state.
The controversy emerged following reports published by Euractiv on June 12, which cited diplomats familiar with remarks allegedly made by Kallas during a private discussion in Mexico in late May. According to the report, the EU High Representative compared Israel’s treatment of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank to South Africa’s apartheid regime.
The dispute marks one of the most serious confrontations between Brussels and Israel in recent years. The language allegedly used by Kallas in private appears to go significantly beyond the terminology the European Union has publicly adopted towards Israel, since senior EU officials have generally avoided comparisons with South Africa’s apartheid regime. The leak therefore exposed a potential gap between the EU’s public diplomatic posture and views allegedly expressed behind closed doors.
