EU leaders tackle Middle East war but aim to keep up Ukraine support

European Union leaders meet on Thursday to grapple with the conflict between Israel and Hamas while also aiming to show continuing support for Ukraine in its war against Russia’s invasion.
The summit in Brussels will be the first in-person meeting of the EU’s 27 national leaders since the deadly Oct. 7 assault on Israel by Palestinian militant group Hamas, which prompted Israel to bombard and blockade Hamas-run Gaza.
While EU countries have all strongly condemned the Hamas attack, leaders have struggled to stick to the same message beyond that, with some stressing Israel’s right to self-defence and others emphasising concern about Palestinian civilians.
In the lead-up to the summit, EU countries were wrangling over whether to call for a “humanitarian pause”, with some arguing such a measure was vital to get aid into Gaza while others said it could limit Israel’s ability to defend itself.
Diplomats said the EU appeared to be coalescing around a compromise call for “pauses” in the plural, as this suggested short breaks in fighting for specific missions such as hostage releases or aid convoys, rather than a formal ceasefire.