The European Commission is expected to discuss this week, possibly as soon as Tuesday, a proposal to suspend Israel’s participation in parts of the Horizon 2020 program, the European Union’s flagship scientific research funding initiative and the world’s largest framework for collaborative scientific and industrial research, according to the commission’s published agenda.
The discussion follows accusations from several EU member states, which last week claimed that Israel is not fulfilling its humanitarian access commitments regarding Gaza. These countries have urged the Commission to present “concrete options,” and an EU official responded that “all options are on the table.”
A European Commission spokesperson stated, “Israel has indeed made efforts to improve humanitarian aid entry into Gaza, but the situation remains dire. The EU is conducting ongoing assessments, but unless we see significant improvement based on our agreements with Israel, all options remain on the table.”
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For the suspension to be implemented, it would require a qualified majority vote among EU member states. That means support would be needed from key players such as Germany and Italy, both of which have criticized Israel over the Gaza aid crisis. Behind the scenes, Israel is working to prevent a majority from forming, but sources suggest there may already be enough support to pass the motion.
“If Israel is suspended from the program, it will be a disaster, for Israeli science and for our international standing," an Israeli diplomatic source warned. "This is a slippery slope.”
Israel has been a major partner in the Horizon program since the 1990s. Its exclusion would deal a serious blow to Israeli scientific research and damage Israel’s reputation as a leading scientific power. Horizon provides a framework for R&D across multiple sectors, with Europe investing billions in projects meant to shape the future. The current program runs from 2021 through 2027; if suspended, Israel would lose two years of funding.