Address by
Deputy Prime Minister and Minster of Foreign Affairs David Levy
before the EU-Israel Association Council
Luxembourg, June 13, 2000
Foreign Ministers, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Today we are marking the entering into force of the Association
Agreement. Israel and Europe, as states and as a union, have come a
long way in the development of their relations. The ties between us
constitute an extensive framework of long-standing democratic
principles, membership in the free world, economic gain and shared
cultural values.
Europe, the cradle of the humanitarian and democratic values of
Montesquieu, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Immanuel Kant and John Stuart
Mill, is also the Europe of Rambam (Maimonides) and Baruch Spinoza;
it is the Europe of Freud; of Mendelssohn and Mahler; of Benjamin
Disraeli, Stefan Zweig, Heinrich Heine, Einstein, Leon Blum,
Mendes-France, Primo Levi and many others whose remarkable
contributions to the wonderful European culture continue to shine,
irrespective of time and place.
Israel attaches great significance to this important agreement. For
us, it represents a point of departure for the development of
political and economic cooperation, and reflects the enhancement of
our relations, based upon common interests, shared perceptions, for
the welfare and benefit of our peoples.
This agreement is a natural result of the relationship, reflecting
the reciprocal ties between Israel and the EU, which has developed
over the years. This is a relationship based upon geographical
proximity and economic ties, and was founded upon those same liberal
and democratic values. This is the reason for our belief that the
Association Agreement, if exploited to the full, carries with it
great potential for our future ties.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Association Agreement is not the only basis for Israeli-European
ties. This does not mark the beginning of the relations between us,
since these ties have existed for many years - indeed, since the
establishment of the State of Israel and the rehabilitation of Europe
following the end of the Second World War. We welcome this agreement,
and it is one we have sought after many years of Israeli-European
dialogue on various levels. This dialogue has seen progress and also
setbacks, but there has always been a suitable level of dialogue and
openness.
This is a process which does not ignore the historical context of the
ties between the Jewish people and Europe, and which develops through
hope and with an eye to the future. The political dialogue, anchored
in the Association Agreement, is one of the most important foundation
stones for the cooperation between us. This dialogue will enable us
to update each other and to increase our cooperation on important
common issues such as terrorism, weapons of mass destruction and drug
trafficking. The achievement of stability, security, and peace in the
Mediterranean Basin is a shared objective requiring an
institutionalized and ongoing dialogue between us.
One of the guarantees for regional stability is economic prosperity,
encompassing all the states of the region. From a scientific and
technological point of view, Israel belongs to the West. However,
from a geographical standpoint, it belongs to the Middle East. Thus,
Israel can play a unique role, acting as a bridge between the two
worlds. This bridge will assist in the economic development of the
countries of the Middle East, while accelerating their integration in
the European and global economies. Europe, possessing economic and
technological capabilities, and which has ties and interests in the
Middle East, also has an important role to play in the achievement of
this objective.
We do not wish to impose economic or political approaches on our
neighbors, and we have no desire to tell others what they must do for
their own welfare or success. Nevertheless, we are certain about one
thing: prosperity contributes to stability and welfare prevents war,
and promises a good quality of life.
Without taking away from the importance of Israel's integration in
the region, I wish to emphasize that Israel believes that our
economic relations embody a potential beyond that of the
European-Mediterranean cooperation framework. It would not benefit
any of the parties if our economic ties were restricted to this
framework alone. There are advantages for both Israel and Europe in
the advancement of bilateral economic cooperation in areas in which
Israel plays a leading role on an international level. These areas
include research and development, medicine, science, the creation of
information societies and hi-tech. The remarkable success of Israel's
participation in the EU Research and Development Framework Program is
evidence of the utilization of this potential.
The EU is the source of about half of Israeli imports and about a
third of exports, reaching a sum total of EUR 24 billion. Fifteen
countries of the EU are our important trade partners, constituting 39
percent of our overall trade. We believe that the advancement of the
cooperation embodied in the Association Agreement will enable us to
increase our volume of trade, while at the same time reducing the
trade deficit between the sides.
There are a number of ways in which we can accomplish the goal of
increasing the volume of trade, as in the pan-European accumulation
of rules of origin. This will enable EU products produced in
cooperation with Eastern Europe to receive preferential status in
Israel. I will leave it to the experts to identify the correct ways
and means to improve our volume of trade. Our task, as policy makers
and leaders, is to guide the professionals and to provide them with
the authority to implement this policy.
In our opinion, we should open negotiations for the signing of an
agreement on mutual recognition of standardization, which will
improve the access of Israeli products to European markets.
We trust that the negotiations already well under way in the fields
of agriculture and processed foodstuffs will lead to the expansion of
trade in these domains. The establishment of an industrial
cooperation framework will lead to an expansion of contacts in the
private sector.
We would like to see development in cooperation in the customs
sphere. I trust that by the end of 2000, it will be possible to
determine priorities for joint action, which will be carried out at
the beginning of 2001.
I believe that we will benefit significantly from the cooperation,
with the goal of meeting the new global economic challenge. Israel
and the EU are today facing similar macro-economic challenges, and we
see great advantages in the institutionalization of an unrestricted
economic dialogue which will define the scope of the discussion and
reference points in a multi-faceted and comprehensive manner.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The relations between Israel and the EU, the economic cooperation
between us, and the Association Agreement which I am delighted to
finalize here today in Luxembourg, speak for themselves. This is a
central pillar both of Israel's economy and our ties. We must not
link these ties to other areas, and it is unhelpful to establish
irrelevant linkages between the economic dimension and other issues,
however important they may be.
Israel is aware that the EU has an important role in the Middle East
peace process, but it is the parties themselves who must negotiate
directly to achieve peace. We share the European approach which
aspires to economic prosperity and the preservation of stability in
the Mediterranean region, to be accomplished by promoting regional
integration. By way of the Euro-Mediterranean framework, through its
support for regional development and as a sponsor of the Multilateral
process, Europe can play a central role in the reshaping of the
Middle East.
We are at the height of a peace process, which I trust will expand
further. The Government of Israel believes that the year 2000 will
see crucial decisions being made on the road to the accomplishment of
peace. One of these decisions has already been carried out: Israel
has withdrawn from Lebanon in full accordance with Security Council
Resolutions 425 and 426 of 1978. The Government decision, adopted on
March 5, was implemented in May.
We hoped that the withdrawal from Lebanon would take place within the
framework and context of an Israeli-Syrian and an Israeli-Lebanese
agreement. Nevertheless, we made it clear that we would not be held
hostage to the interests of Syria and others in Lebanon, and that if
the efforts with Syria were to be exhausted without result, Israel
would not hesitate to implement a unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon,
through full coordination with the UN, and through promoting
transparency in its actions, for the international community.
Unfortunately, it appears to us that Syria is not yet ready to make
peace, and that a genuine and comprehensive peace with Israel is not
at the top of Syrian national priorities. Even so, Israel is ready to
return to the negotiating table at any time.
With regard to Lebanon, I believe that for the first time since the
outbreak of the civil war in the 1970s, the opportunity has arrived
to bring about rehabilitation, peace and stability there. Lebanon has
to make the choice, and I hope that the EU will also play a part in
the rehabilitation of the Lebanese economy and that it will assist
Lebanon to implement Resolution 425 - the restoration of security and
peace.
We also hope that this will be a year of important decisions in the
protracted peace process between Israel and the Palestinians. In
recent years, we have occasionally made the mistake of overusing the
term "time of decision" or "the moment of truth". Now, it appears
that the process has indeed reached the moment of ripeness requiring
courageous decisions by the respective leaderships. Not all the
details have been finalized, agreement has yet to be reached on many
issues, and we still have plenty of work to do. Nevertheless, we are
approaching the point at which the two leaderships, and,
particularly, the two leaders, will have to make decisions.
Israel has carried out obligations, some of which have been
difficult, entailing significant risks. I hope that the Palestinian
leadership will internalize the need to compromise, leading to a
permanent status agreement, and that they will not allow the moment
of ripeness to slip away. The loss will be felt by all of us.
I am not laboring under the illusion of an immediate and harmonious
peace, and I believe in adopting a sober outlook and clear-eyed
realism, We are not living in Europe, and anyone who attempts to draw
up a picture in his mind based upon European political principles and
parameters is making a mistake. A mistake of this kind, on our part,
is liable to be fatal for us.
Close economic and political cooperation between Israel and the EU,
our shared values, the similarity of our economies, and our common
interests will have positive implications for the entire region.
Colleagues,
The Association Agreement is an important achievement. We must
continue to develop beyond this. The institutionalization of the
economic dialogue, a standardization agreement, and a working group
in the domain of accumulation and harmonization of rules of origin
are the practical steps which I believe are required. The framework
of our ties has today reached a new level. I am certain that we can
climb the ladder of prosperity together, for our mutual benefit.
Thank you very much.