Israel’s involvement in lucrative EU programme in jeopardy

Participation by Israel in the European Union’s prestigious Horizon 2020 scientific research and development programme is in jeopardy over new EU guidelines that prevent any EU funding in Israeli-occupied territories.

Intensive contacts have so far failed to resolve differences over the terms of Israel’s participation in the lucrative project and the wording of clauses to ensure that no funds from Brussels reach Israeli companies or institutions in the West Bank, Golan Heights or east Jerusalem, all captured by Israel during the 1967 six-day Arab-Israeli war.

The clock is ticking, as Israel wants to present proposals to participate in Horizon 2020 next month when the first round of calls for researchers to apply is published.

After years of issuing statements condemning Israeli settlement construction, the EU went a step further in July, issuing new guidelines barring funding to Israeli entities operating over the 1967 green line border.

Israel and the EU have enjoyed close scientific co-operation in the past and Israel was expected to be the only non-EU member participating in the €80 billion Horizon 2020, the EU’s flagship R&D project. Israel was due to contribute €600 million, but would receive much more back in research funds.

Leading Israeli academics warned of “irreversible damage” to the country’s scientific community if Israel was not accepted to the six-year programme and predicted a short- term financial loss of €300 million.

Israel presented the EU with compromise proposals based on accepting that EU money will not be transferred to the West Bank as long as the EU agreed that this did not mean Israel recognised the 1967 lines as Israel’s permanent border.

Brussels insists that the new guidelines are included as an attachment to the Horizon agreement.

According to an EU official, agreement has been reached on most of the issues, but negotiations are continuing on about 20 per cent of the draft agreement, which was described as “extremely complicated”.

EU ambassador Lars Faaborg-Andersen expressed hope that a compromise could be reached.

“Both sides are striving for a pragmatic and mutually acceptable arrangement which would allow Israel to join by the time Horizon 2020 starts on the 1st of January 2014.”

Prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu made it clear that Israel will not sign any new agreements with the EU if the guidelines are not amended.