Madrid and Rome: Dissenting Voices Within EU Standing Up Over Middle East — Part 1
20:22 12.03.2026 (Updated: 20:47 12.03.2026)
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Madrid and Rome: Dissenting Voices Within EU Standing Up Over Middle East — Part 1
The divide within the once-unanimous European Union is becoming increasingly evident. A clear example of these differences lies in the divergent stances toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the US-Israeli intervention against Iran.
Among the most representative voices of these positions are the southern European countries, embodied by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Pedro Sánchez: Challenging Netanyahu
On May 22, 2024, he announced that his Council of Ministers would approve recognition of the State of Palestine, which indeed took place on May 28 of the same year.
In October 2024, he urged the European Commission to suspend the association agreement with Israel, demanding that it “act decisively” in response to the actions of the Israeli government and its leader, Benjamin Netanyahu.
He also accused Israel’s leadership of genocide in Gaza, emphasizing that those responsible “will have to answer to justice,” amid Spain’s readiness to comply with the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for Netanyahu.
In May 2025, during his address at the XXXIV Summit of the League of Arab States, he declared that Palestine “is bleeding before our eyes” and called on the international community to “stop the massacre in Gaza.”
In September 2025, he accused Israeli authorities of “exterminating a defenseless people” and secured urgent approval of a Royal Decree-Law to legally consolidate the arms embargo against Israel that has been in place since October 2023.
In addition, he announced the closure of Spanish airspace and ports to aircraft and vessels transporting goods destined for the Israeli military.
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The divide within the once-unanimous European Union is becoming increasingly evident. A clear example of these differences lies in the divergent stances toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the US-Israeli intervention against Iran.
Among the most representative voices of these positions are the southern European countries, embodied by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Pedro Sánchez: Challenging Netanyahu
On May 22, 2024, he announced that his Council of Ministers would approve recognition of the State of Palestine, which indeed took place on May 28 of the same year.
In October 2024, he urged the European Commission to suspend the association agreement with Israel, demanding that it “act decisively” in response to the actions of the Israeli government and its leader, Benjamin Netanyahu.
He also accused Israel’s leadership of genocide in Gaza, emphasizing that those responsible “will have to answer to justice,” amid Spain’s readiness to comply with the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for Netanyahu.
In May 2025, during his address at the XXXIV Summit of the League of Arab States, he declared that Palestine “is bleeding before our eyes” and called on the international community to “stop the massacre in Gaza.”
In September 2025, he accused Israeli authorities of “exterminating a defenseless people” and secured urgent approval of a Royal Decree-Law to legally consolidate the arms embargo against Israel that has been in place since October 2023.
In addition, he announced the closure of Spanish airspace and ports to aircraft and vessels transporting goods destined for the Israeli military.
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