A separate arrangement must be found for Lebanon if it cannot be included in the temporary ceasefire struck by the US, Iran and Israel, The EU's commissioner for the Mediterranean, Dubravka Suica has told The National.
“We want to ensure that Lebanon is included in the ceasefire with Iran, or establish a separate arrangement,” Ms Suica said in an interview in which she described the images coming out of Beirut on Wednesday as "horrible".
“It is of utmost importance to extend this momentum towards broader regional peace, because I'm really deeply concerned about the escalation of violence, and about its impact on civilians, including large-scale displacement,” she said.
Speaking after more than 200 Lebanese people were killed in Israeli shelling across multiple Beirut neighbourhoods, Ms Suica said the EU was doing "its utmost to prevent further escalation". The Israeli strikes, which it says were aimed at the Iran-backed Hezbollah, have caused outrage due to their high civilian toll.
Fighting must end
They have also raised questions about the viability of a temporary ceasefire struck by the US and Iran after the US and Israel launched a joint military operation against Iran on February 28. There has been confusion about whether Lebanon was initially included in the ceasefire package.
"We are calling again to end all hostilities, including through renewed Israel-Lebanon dialogue and Unifil, and [for] the Lebanese Armed Forces to continue to play a key stabilising role," Ms Suica said, referring to a UN mission that patrols the border between the two countries, which have never signed a peace treaty. She warned of probable further instability caused by more than 125,000 people, most of them Syrian, fleeing Lebanon to Syria in March, driven by conflict.
Ms Suica cautioned, however, that no new aid scheme for Lebanon could be expected in the coming weeks. A three-year, €1 billion EU-funded financial support package for Lebanon, which is largely aimed at strengthening basic services, is set to expire in 2027.
"I am in very close contact with the [Lebanese] Minister of Foreign Affairs, so we will see," Ms Suica said. "But first, they have to have enough absorption capacity to absorb this billion. At the moment, this is not the case, unfortunately," she added, referring to the need for stability for the government to be able to push forward with reforms.
Gulf solidarity
Ms Suica also expressed solidarity with Gulf states, which have continued to suffer from Iranian attacks despite the ceasefire. Since the start of the conflict, some European states have lent military support to Gulf allies, while EU institutional leaders have regularly expressed solidarity.
Part of Ms Suica's portfolio is to oversee the strengthening of relations between the EU and the Middle East, including the Gulf, as part of a newly adopted pact for the Mediterranean. Ms Suica will present an action plan to set in motion concrete initiatives next week in Brussels.
"Our security, economies, supply chains and financial markets are interlinked, and for us, preserving stability and predictability is essential," Ms Suica said. "This crisis showed how important the need is for a stronger EU-Gulf partnership, including on energy, security and defence co-operation, to make both of us stronger and more resilient."
Yet the war appears to have also put some initiatives on hold, including the first meeting of EU and GCC energy ministers, which was scheduled for next month in Cyprus. It will be postponed, Ms Suica said, and may take place under Ireland's presidency of the EU which is set to start in July.
Cyprus came under an Iranian drone attack, suspected to have been launched by Hezbollah, at the start of the Iran war. Security concerns are not the reason for the meeting being pushed back. "It's not because we are afraid of attacks, but because we don't have the atmosphere for this," Ms Suica said. "It's better to postpone it."
