Geopolitical Europe Pulse: Europe and the crisis in the Middle East

19 April 2024

First things first: a big thank you to everyone who already subscribed to Geopolitical Europe!

The Geopolitical Europe Pulse is a compilation of articles and resources on a specific topic of current affairs with particular relevance for Europe’s, and the EU’s, role in the world. This week’s edition brings you a roundup of content on the European responses to Iran’s strikes on Israel, and European policy on the crisis in Gaza and the region more broadly.

How did European states react to Iran’s attacks on Israel, and to what extent do their responses align with other states? Le Grand Continent has created a map which visualises the different responses - also easily understandable for non-French speakers.

What does the EU actually say? EU leaders backed new sanctions against Iran in reaction to the strikes on Israel, but the overall wording from Brussels on the region has barely changed and remains a lowest-common denominator approach, as reflected in the Council conclusions from this week’s European Council.

Background reading: How did the EU engage in conflict mitigation in the past? In their article “EU Policy towards the Israel-Palestine Conflict: The Limitations of Mitigation Strategies”, Sinem Akgül-Açıkmeşe and Soli Özel explain the reasons for the EU’s limited role and successful approaches in the region.

On the horizon: the situation in West Bank is relatively under the radar of reporting from the region - but it should be on the political radar for Europeans, argues Luigi Scazzieri in this policy brief for CER, published in February.

Podcast recommendation: In this episode of “The World Unpacked” (podcast by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace), Sophia Besch - the podcast’s new host and expert on European defence - discusses the implications of Iran’s strikes on Israel with Karim Sadjadpour.