All European Union countries except Hungary have jointly urged a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and called on Israel not to launch a planned attack on Rafah.
Budapest refused to support the call, despite pressure from other capitals, and single-handedly derailed EU plans to collectively impose sanctions on Israel. Hungary’s move followed ten hours of tense talks between EU foreign ministers on Monday in which Hungary’s Péter Szijjártó blocked consensus on both issues.
As a result, 26 of the 27 EU member states isolated Hungary and issued their own statement calling for “an immediate humanitarian pause that could lead to a sustainable ceasefire” in Gaza, where some 29,000 Palestinians have been killed since the outbreak of conflict on 7 October.
The 26 countries also backed a statement asking the Israeli government not to proceed with planned military action in the southern Gaza town of Rafah as an attack on the border area would “worsen an already catastrophic humanitarian situation and prevent the urgently needed provision of basic services and humanitarian assistance.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing international pressure to refrain from a planned ground offensive in Rafah, which he says harbours the last Hamas militants in Gaza. On Monday, a member of the military cabinet threatened to launch an offensive if the remaining hostages are not released by Ramadan.
In recent months, Budapest has threatened to use its veto power to delay or completely derail EU foreign policy decisions. This has forced the European Council to look for ways to bypass Hungary. For instance, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán was asked to leave the European Council’s negotiating room in December to allow the remaining heads of state and government to approve the start of accession negotiations for Ukraine and Moldova without him.
