Mr President, the cavalier attitude the Israeli authorities display towards their obligations to comply with international law with regard to their trade relations with European Union is an indicative example of its attitude to international law in general. The fact that the European Union is so weak in exerting its pressure on Israel to comply with international law is reflected in the fact that new agreements have been made with Israel in recent times. I would like to touch on those. I have enormous respect for the efforts of Mr Solana, on behalf of the European Union, to reduce tension and to encourage a process of peace negotiations, but the European Union is undermining his efforts, in my view, by failing to demonstrate its determination to Israel that agreements made to Israel's commercial and trade advantage must be fully complied with or will be terminated. I have no doubt that the current EU-Israel Association Agreement should be suspended. The actions of the Israeli Government that deny the Palestinians their human rights are in breach of that Association Agreement. Despite repeated calls by myself and others to have a full review of Israel's compliance with human rights provisions, nothing tangible has been done, to my knowledge. Several months ago the Community agreed with Israel to expand its preferential import quotas on a number of agricultural products that are largely or mainly produced in its illegal settlements, and these are for export to Community markets. The Community took this measure without requiring that Israel stop violating its agreement by issuing proofs of origin for settlement products. This is not the way to defend or preserve the Community's legal right to require the correct implementation of the agreement by Israel. The Commission is now saying that it will not be possible to include Israel in the pan-European cumulation agreement, while Israel continues to misapply the origin rules protocol in its existing agreement. The Community's political will to maintain this position is not convincing to Israel and certainly not convincing to me and many others in this House, while it fails to ensure the correct implementation of the existing agreement. It is my view that the current crisis in the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians is such that the European Union has to exert the greatest possible pressure on the Israeli Government. In the economic sphere two things need to happen: steps to suspend the Association Agreement need to be initiated on the basis of breaches of human rights obligations contained in the Association Agreement; and legal steps should be initiated to recover duties due because Israel has misrepresented the origin of its exports. Both these steps require the political will of a united Commission. I am not convinced that the Commission is united on this matter and the consent of the Member States is needed. I call upon the Irish Government to make this a priority for its presidency of the European Union. I should like to emphasise that in making these comments I acknowledge that the responsibility to make peace is shared with the Palestinian leadership. It must ensure that all possible steps are taken to end the vicious suicide bombings that have caused so much Israeli anguish and hardship and have hardened attitudes behind an irresponsible Israeli Government. Likewise the United States must exercise its enormous influence on Israel to cease its assassinations and abuses of human rights in the occupied territories. I should like to address two points made by the Commissioner. He said that Member States are applying duties on settlement goods. My understanding is that only happens in a small number of cases where Israel has actually declared these goods to be settlement goods, and it does so only to relieve the pressure of the Commission and this House on them in relation to this matter. Regarding the post-delivery verification system, once Israel declares where the goods come from, there is no way that a Member State can legally challenge that verification. I would like the Commissioner to address those two issues.

Political group: PSE