PARIS — Israeli diplomacy is fully mobilized against campaigns across the globe in support of Gaza Palestinians. Yesterday, European High representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell convened a special meeting of European Union foreign ministers. Borrell's words concluding the meeting surprised no one in Jerusalem, but the dynamics in Brussels left room for interpretation.

Speaking to reporters following the videoconference, Borrell admitted that unanimity was not reached with only 26 out of the 27 ministers agreeing after the long debate that filled the afternoon. The outlier was Hungary. Lacking unanimity, no written conclusions were published.

Borrell read, “The priority is the immediate cessation of all violence and the implementation of a cease-fire … The second is to consider that the upsurge of violence in the last days has led to a high number of civilian casualties, deaths and injuries, among them a high number of children and women, and that this is unacceptable. We condemn the rocket attacks by Hamas and other terrorist groups on Israel territory and we fully support Israel’s right to defense, but we have also considered it and stated that this has to be done in a proportionate manner and respecting international humanitarian law — and we consider that security for Israel and Palestine requires a true political solution."

A diplomatic source told Al-Monitor that the lack of written conclusions was a clear victory for the pro-Israeli camp within the European Union. No unanimity means no real outcome, said the source. “Borrell himself admitted there were different ‘nuances’ during the discussion of the foreign ministers. He also referred to victims without naming sides and put the emphasis on a long-term solution and humanitarian aid. Clearly, the ministers had a hard time reaching a formula that should be accepted on all," said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity.