Check against delivery! 

Good afternoon.

I am finishing my short, but intense, stay in [the United Arab] Emirates, in Abu Dhabi [and] now in Dubai.  

It is clear that [the United Arab] Emirates is an important partner for the European Union. More than that, it is an active broker in international affairs – not only in the region, [but] worldwide.  

As the European Union, we value the role and influence of [the United Arab] Emirates. Certainly, we have a lot to learn from each other. That is what we did during these intense hours where I had exchanges – about the Middle East in particular, with regard to the situation in Gaza especially.  

I discussed with my colleague and friend, [Emirati] Minister for Foreign Affairs Sheikh Abdullah [bin Zayed], and many others.  

I am coming from the humanitarian hub [in the International Humanitarian City], where humanitarian support is being stockpiled before being distributed all around the world. 

In particular we discussed about the implementation of the Biden plan. Unfortunately, we are still not there, after weeks and weeks of discussions. But, one day or another the ceasefire will come and then we have to start discussing the ‘Day After’.  

We agreed with the Emirati colleagues that we have to start discussing about the ‘Day After’ - even if the ‘Day After’ is, unhappily, not tomorrow.  

But it will happen. And when it happens, we will have to work together. The sooner the better.  

For that, I think we have to stick to basic principles, and accommodate our concerns and the concerns of all parties, and introduce some creative ideas.  

Allow me to say that [the United Arab] Emirates is playing a very important role on providing humanitarian support to Gaza. Maybe the most effective support that anyone is providing in Gaza – not only in quantity – but on the capacity to reach people inside Gaza –also in the evacuation of the wounded to the Emirati hospitals, from here to other places in the world.  

Yes, I am very happy for having had the possibility of coming to [the United Arab] Emirates, as part of my visit to the region because [the United Arab] Emirates is a key country. It is playing an international role – and it will continue playing an international role in order to look for peace in the Middle East and worldwide.  

Instead of giving a long speech, I prefer to be able to answer some questions.  

Thank you. 

Q&A 

Q. We just saw almost an hour ago an incident happened in Beirut where pagers exploded and injured members of Hezbollah. So, do you think Israel is pushing towards a war with Lebanon? How do you see this escalation happening? How do you see it play out?  

As you say, this news came [in] minutes ago. It is impossible for me to comment because I got the news - also thanks to you - but it is impossible for me to comment. I am trying to get in touch with [partners in] Beirut in order to get more information and clarification. But certainly, everything that puts trouble in the region is bad news. So, I cannot comment.  

Q. Do you see escalation potentially happened in Lebanon with the ongoing situation?

I was in Lebanon before coming to [the] Emirates. I was visiting the United Nations’ troops in the border [United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon]. When I went there, the level of danger was increasing, and I saw the troops go into their barracks. Certainly, there is a possibility of the war spilling over not only to Lebanon, but also, it is already an important fire in the Red Sea where we – the European Union - have deployed a Navy mission [EUNAVFOR ASPIDES] in order to protect the freedom of navigation. The risk of a spill-over is not from yesterday, it is from the beginning. And we have to put all our efforts in order to try to avoid the ‘regionalisation’ of the war in Gaza. 

Q. I have a couple questions; did you discuss with your Emirati counterparts and interlocutors the upcoming GCC-EU summit? Any comment on what the Foreign Minister of Israel said about you calling you “behaving like the worst antisemites" and he accused you of leading an antisemitic hate filled campaign against Israel? 

Yes, I have been discussing with the Emirati authorities [on] the issue that you refer [to]. It is an important moment for the relationship between Europe and the Gulf countries. This summit has been pending for many years. And finally, it will take place, and it will take place before the end of my mandate, because I put all of my political will and preparation on this summit. We are even considering the possibility of holding a ministerial meeting before the summit in order to make it a success. I know that there are issues in which [the United Arab] Emirates is particularly sensitive - which is a trade issue - and I hope that the summit will open the door to go deeper on the issue of part of our relationship, and the issue of trade. 

On the Israeli Foreign Minister’s comment, I am not going to comment this kind of attack. 

Q. Can you just say a bit more on the issue of trade? What are you referring to? 

Well, we have been talking for quite long about the trade relationship between the European Union and the Gulf. This can be considered as a region-to-region [relationship], who can be considered through bilateral agreements. The experience shows that region-to-region [cooperation] is maybe more difficult – maybe to go step by step and doing particular agreements with some Gulf countries who could be more interested would be a better way. But I cannot anticipate. The only thing I am saying is that we will do everything in order to accommodate the concerns and to requests of the Emirate government in order to go deeper in our relationship – in particular on the trade side.  

Q. You mentioned earlier the Red Sea being on fire and the EU response to that. I ask the EU High Representative on foreign policy: do you see a way for these attacks by the Houthis to stop? Is there any communication or anything that can be offered to the Houthis to get them to stop other than the end of the war in Gaza? And just given sort of what we have seen from the Houthis’ behaviour in regards to the arrest of NGO staff and everywhere else: can they be a legitimate partner for negotiations, given sort of their response to the wider international community that we have seen? 

Many questions in a single question. It is like a Russian puppet; you open the puppet and you [get] one after the other; you go deeper into the subject. Well, I was in Djibouti, and I went to pay a visit to the two warships. I was embarked in an Italian destroyer and then in a Greek frigate with an anti-aerial capacity. And I saw them working, escorting ships. You know that now we have a deep problem with an oil tanker; 150,000 tons of oil that could spill over and create a strong environmental impact. We are working to take it out. Our ships can do whatever they can do inside the mandate they have, which is – how military people would say – non-executive mandate. Which means they are not going to perform attacks, [it is] only defensive – protecting ships and protecting themselves, because they are also being attacked. But we will not respond by attacking the sources of the fire. It is just a defensive mission and a protecting mission, for the ships and for trade. You know that [the attacks], from the Egyptian’s financial capacity, are being very costly. Every ship that has to go to the Horn of Africa means less money for the Egyptians and more time, and it means more cost, and it means more price for the European consumers. So, it is not against Israel, it is against freedom of navigation and about the economy of Egypt and the Europeans. So, we have to protect it. We will continue doing that in the limits of the mandate: non-executive, defensive and not attacking. Just before the war in Gaza, the prospects were good for the situation in Yemen. The United Nations Special Envoy [Hans Grundberg] - who has all of our support - was working in order to have a starting agreement. Unhappily, the war in Gaza came and everything became stalled, and it is still stalled. This is one of the examples of the spill-over effect of the war. But in the meantime, we have to do what we can do; it is to protect the ships in the defensive mission. 

Q. Two things you said that, one way or the other, a ceasefire will come. Prime Minister Netanyahu is contemplating whether to fire his Defence minister, Yoav Gallant, and replace him with a right-wing politician who is opposed to a ceasefire. If he does that, what does that mean for European policy towards Israel? What does that mean to you? What is your opinion on that? What is your reaction to that - Netanyahu firing his Defence Minister and replacing him with Gideon Sa’ar? When you say you are discussing the day after with the Emiratis, what sort of role do you want to see the Emiratis play in Gaza? Do they want to play that role? 

I am not going to say what Emiratis want to do or they are willing to do. The circumstances are still very dire, and it is difficult to say what we can do the ‘Day After’, but the ‘Day After’ will come. And, at the United Nations at the end of the month, at the United Nations General Assembly, we will try, together with the Arabs and the Norwegians, to hold – I am not going to call it a conference but - a meeting in order to gather every people, all people, all members of the United Nations that could contribute to bring the ceasefire. To look after [it], in order to make the situation more stable and to avoid the cycle of violence. So many people, generation after generation, are being killed, on one side and the other in the Middle East. But first things first. The first thing we need is a ceasefire, freedom of hostages and free entrance for humanitarian support. That is something which is more urgent than others. Keeping in mind that, yes, this is the most urgent thing, but then it is the political solution. If there is not a political project, the war is just a repetition, one after another, always the same story. This is what I think everybody that could do something has to do [something]. [The United Arab] Emirates is doing a lot for diplomatic point of view, for humanitarian point of view. I am sure that for any solution for the day after, they can continue playing an important role. But at that moment it is not for me to precise it.  

Q. What about the targeted sanctions, the EU sanctions on the Israeli? Any update on this? What is it?

The last news about sanctions is about Iran. I think it is important to mention it because some voices have been saying that the European Union is doing nothing in order to respond to the alleged supply of weapons to Russia in the war against Ukraine. Yes, we are doing, we have been doing [work]. Last week we presented another package of sanctions. And by the way, the Iranian government protested about this proposal of these sanctions regime - sanctions proposal. So, I use this opportunity to say that that is not true, that the European Union is not acting with the tools that we have. We have been imposing sanctions against Hamas leaders, against some violence settlers and some organisations of the violence settlers in the West Bank. And now against Iran. And certainly, there is a proposal on the table for the member states to consider about some messages of hate against the Palestinians. But it is for the Member States to decide. 

Q. On the back of the Madrid meeting, what do you think is a likely possible clear schedule for the establishment of the Palestinian state? What do you think the likelihood of that happening is, given Israel's opposition to it?  

I understand that you want to [have] explain[ed] everything about future events. But I cannot anticipate what you are asking me for. I repeat, once again, that the first thing that we have to reach is a ceasefire, to free hostages, to provide humanitarian support and to look at the basis of the basic principles that have to accommodate the concerns of all parties. And the basic principles we know. They are there – it is part of international law, in United Nations resolutions. But it has to be the will from both parts - and more than the two parts, [of] the international community - to engage in looking for a political solution.  

Q. When do you expect the ‘Day After’? Is it coming soon, in days, weeks, months?   

When President [of the United States, Joseph] Biden announced a plan for the ceasefire, everybody was expecting it to be agreed quickly. Unhappily, one day after another, the agreement is not there. So, I cannot foresee what can happen in the next few days or weeks. The only thing I can say is that all actors involved have to continue putting pressure on both parties to reach this agreement that is coming late. Every day that the agreement is not being reached, it means more day for the hostages to be retained prisoner and more people being killed in the war. So, [it] is not a matter of waiting for tomorrow. Tomorrow is already too late.  

Link to the video: https://audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/video/I-260926