A new survey from the Department of Political Science at Ben Gurion University reveals that 81 percent of Israelis support Israel's joining the European Union. Many Israelis, indeed, tend to believe that everything would be wonderful here if we only could join the EU. Their excitement is premature. Full membership in the EU brings with it a slew of disadvantages. While Israel is not a formal member of the EU, it has signed various agreements with the EU and as such receives almost the full range of privileges of member states. What it does not receive, however, is the obligation to play the unnecessary (and even damaging) price of being a member while enjoying these privileges. Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and the Principality of Liechtenstein are not EU members because they believe that formal membership is not to their advantage (Norway, for instance, does not want its oil income to subsidize French agriculture or Airbus). Iceland applied for membership in July 2009, but only to save itself from economic collapse. Israel also has good reason not to become a member of the EU, starting with the fact that it is not a European country. Like the European non-members, Israel enjoys a preferential economic relationship with the European Union. In 1996, Israel became the first non-European country to be included in the European Union's Research and Development Programme, despite the fact that Europe was harshly critical at the time of Israel's negotiation position vis-a-vis the Palestinian Authority. In 2004, Israel joined the EU's Galileo project, a European global satellite navigation system equivalent to the United States's GPS. Thirty percent of Israel's exports go to the European Union and 40 percent of our imports come from there. In terms of economics and research, Israel is an integral part of the EU. Formal membership, on the other hand, would exact an unnecessary and even damaging political price. An unprecedented 1964 ruling by a European court determined that European law takes precedence over the national laws of its member countries. In accordance with this principle, many Israeli laws could be overturned, particularly laws relating to Israel's Jewish identity. Thus the Law of Return and Citizenship Law could be nullified for expressing preference on the basis of ethnicity and religion. In the same way, institutionalized kosher slaughter could be invalidated in Israel. The economic repercussions, as well, would be grave. Joining the EU would force Israel to give up its international trade agreements, including those it currently holds with the United States. Our joining the European Union is not realistic in any case. The Union is not interested in welcoming new members and Germany is worn out from trying to save backward economies on Europe's periphery. Yet the Israeli public should be aware of the fact that today, in terms of our relationship with Europe, Israel enjoys the best of both worlds. Formal EU membership would only exact an unnecessary and damaging political price.
Join the European Union? No thanks.
מערכת היום
מערכת "היום“ מפיקה ומעדכנת תכנים חדשותיים, מבזקים ופרשנויות לאורך כל שעות היממה. התוכן נערך בקפדנות, נבדק עובדתית ומוגש לציבור מתוך האמונה שהקוראים ראויים לעיתונות טובה יותר - אמינה, אובייקטיבית ועניינית.
