Belgian universities want EU to cancel treaty with Israel

‘We are being left to our own devices,’ complained Luc Sels, rector of KU Leuven, in an interview with student magazine Veto on Saturday. There is considerable pressure on universities to sever ties with Israeli institutions, but he says that letting go of them carries risks. ‘It is a breach of contract, with legal and financial consequences.’

Universities in Belgium are also facing demonstrations and occupations on campus. Just like in the Netherlands, Belgian universities must decide how to deal with this, which makes them vulnerable, say Belgian university administrators in an open letter to the foreign ministers of the EU member states, among others.

The Belgians are asking the ministers to terminate the association agreement between the EU and Israel as soon as possible. That agreement covers not only trade and cultural exchange, but also scientific cooperation.

A lot of research funding

Israel pays several hundred million euros a year to participate in Horizon, the European programme for scientific research. Israeli scientists are relatively successful in this programme. They attract a lot of research funding and collaborate extensively with European researchers. This was confirmed once again earlier this month when it became apparent that research with potential military applications is also involved.

Until now, universities in the Netherlands and Belgium have set up their own committees to advise on partnerships with Israeli universities or scientists. But the decision to halt an ongoing project creates ‘legal uncertainty, potential claims for damages and reputational damage’ for universities, according to the ten Belgian institutions that signed the open letter. ‘Without a clear European framework, it is almost impossible to legally justify morally responsible choices.’

Human rights
European foreign ministers met in Brussels on Monday afternoon to discuss the association agreement. They did so at the request of EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, who is said to have concluded in a yet-to-be-published report that Israel is indeed failing to fulfil its obligation to respect human rights.

Spain wants to use this report to terminate the association agreement, but Germany strongly opposed this on Monday afternoon. Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp also seems unwilling to go that far. After the meeting, he said that Kallas should enter into talks with Israel to discuss improving the humanitarian situation in Gaza.

No common position
Unlike its Belgian counterpart, the Dutch university association UNL does not intend to take a joint position on this issue. Universities must decide for themselves with whom they cooperate, says the spokesperson.

In any case, Dutch universities want to study Kallas' report first. On Friday, the University of Amsterdam announced that it would not enter into any new cooperation with Israeli institutions pending the report.

Cutting all ties
Meanwhile, a group of twelve critical academics has published a report with alternative national guidelines for universities. They recommend cutting all ties with Israeli universities at the institutional level as they believe academic freedom will not be compromised if cooperation with individual academics from Israel is allowed to continue.