EU Commissioner Lahbib: “Hamas is not an interlocutor for us”

Published connected 24/10/2025 - 21:30 GMT+2 •Updated 19:42

The European Union wants to play an progressive domiciled successful Middle East diplomacy pursuing nan Gaza ceasefire agreement, provided Hamas plays nary domiciled successful nan early of nan territory.

“Hamas is not an interlocutor for us, it’s a violent group,” nan EU Commissioner for Crisis Management and Preparedness told Euronews successful an exclusive question and reply successful Brussels.

“We request to spot Hamas disarmed and not being portion of a two-state solution,” she added.

The 20-point bid scheme brokered by US President Donald Trump has opened a model of hope, but nan urgency now is to alleviate nan suffering and to supply humanitarian assistance to nan civilian organization successful Gaza, Lahbib said.

The Commissioner urged Israel to swiftly instrumentality nan 2nd shape of nan statement by letting 600 trucks per time participate nan territory.

“We are not location yet. And truthful we inquire nan Israeli authorities to support their promises,” Lahbib said connected Euronews' flagship question and reply programme The Europe Conversation.

Lahbib noted that nan EU Foreign Affairs Council precocious decided to support unit connected Israel by putting a partial suspension of nan EU-Israel Association Agreement connected nan table.

In September, weeks earlier nan Gaza ceasefire agreement, nan EU Commission had formally projected to suspend definite parts of nan bilateral statement pinch Israel, aft a reappraisal indicated imaginable breaches of its quality authorities obligations.

The EU is Israel’s first trading partner and nan first world philanthropist to nan Palestinian Authority.

“With this balanced approach, we besides request to beryllium judge that our rules and principles are respected,” Lahbib said.

Belgium not hindering ‘a caller measurement of backing Ukraine’s warfare effort’

Pivoting to nan warfare successful Ukraine, Lahbib confirmed nan EU’s continuing committedness to supporting that state and its people.

“When I was curate of overseas affairs, I retrieve we were ever repeating that we will support Ukraine arsenic agelong arsenic it takes, and we are doing so, and we will proceed to do so,” she said.

Commenting connected Belgium’s guidance to issuing a €140 cardinal indebtedness to Ukraine utilizing stiff Russian financial assets held astatine Brussels-based Euroclear depository, Lahbib expressed knowing for nan Belgian position.

Belgium is not hindering a caller measurement of backing Ukraine’s warfare effort, she said.

"We don't person an illustration to follow, and it needs to beryllium secured from a ineligible constituent of view. That's nan only thing, that's nan only point," she said. "I deliberation it's conscionable a mobility of time."

The main interest for Belgium is nan Russian retaliation if Moscow demands its assets backmost and sanctions are lifted.

"We conscionable request to unafraid nan ineligible facet to beryllium judge that Belgium is not going to beryllium brought successful beforehand of a tribunal of justness later on," Lahbib said.

After aggravated discussions astatine a European Council acme gathering successful Brussels connected Thursday, EU leaders hoped to travel to an statement complete nan plan.

However, nan EU27 leaders parted without a decision, arsenic they grounded to placate Belgian concerns complete nan proposal.

The taxable will apt beryllium picked up again astatine different acme successful November aliases December.

Asked astir whether Europe is prepared for war, she pointed to nan changing quality of war.

"We are prepared each time for everything," Lahbib said. "But warfare is not [...] a worker knocking astatine your door.

"Today's reality is simply a virus, a chemic attack, a atomic incident that is possibly provoked by powerfulness outages. So we request to person a bully knowing of today's threats."