Minister: Israel will not join H2020

A top Israeli minister has said his country is willing to forego its participation of Horizon 2020.

The Deputy Foreign Minister Ze’ev Elkin made the comments on Israel Radio stating that unless a compromise agreement was found with Brussels, Israel would forego receiving R&D money from the EU’s next framework programme.

Speaking to listeners, Elkin said: “We want to sign and we are ready to negotiate, but if the conditions are as they are today, which are unprecedented…we can’t sign”.

Last week, Israeli officials met with EU staff in Tel-Aviv to discuss the technical and financial arrangements under a possible bilateral agreement for Horizon 2020. Israel is rejecting new EU guidelines that state any funds from Brussels cannot be obtained by organisations operating in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and Golan Heights.

According to comments carried in The Times of Israel, Andreas Reinicke, the EU’s special representative to the Middle East peace process, the EU is unwilling to cancel, modify or delay the implementation of the new guidelines.

Israel has described the new rules as “detrimental” to peace talks with Palestine, which resumed last week for the first time in three years.