The European Union will expand its financial support to the Palestinian Authority with a three -year package of about 1.6 billion euros ($ 1.8 billion), the European commissioner responsible for the Middle East said in an interview with Reuters.
Switzerland Dubravka, a European Commissioner for the Mediterranean, said financial support will be accompanied by reforms in the Palestinian Authority, which has been accused of corruption and governance critics.
“We want them to reform themselves because, without reforms, they will not be strong enough and will not be credible to be interlocutors, not only with us, but also with Israel,” Switzerland said.
Commissioner’s observations were made on Monday before the first “high-level political dialogue” between the European Union Foreign Ministers and high-ranking Palestinian authorities, including Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa in Luxembourg.
The Palestinian Authority well received the donation and loans package considering that “the ability of national institutions to resist and rendering services increases despite the difficult humanitarian conditions and increasing challenges.”
The EU is the largest donor to Palestinians and its authorities expect the Palestinian Authority, which manages the West Bank, can also one day take responsibility for Gaza after the end of the war between Israel and Hamas militants.
The government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, has so far rejected the idea of delivering Gaza to AP and has avoided the broadest goal of the EU of a two-state solution, which would include the establishment of a Palestinian state.
Switzerland said that 620 million euros would be intended for financial support and AP reform, 576 million euros to the “resilience and recovery” of the West Bank and Gaza and 400 million euros would be loans from the European investment bank, subject to the approval of its management body.
According to her, the average EU support to AP has been about 400 million euros in the last 12 years.
“We are now investing reliably in the Palestinian authority,” said Switzerland.
This content was originally published in the European Union will increase financial support to the Palestinian Authority on CNN Brazil.
Source: CNN Brasil
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