EU and Israel
Relations between the EU and Israel are based on the EU-Israel Association Agreement, which has entered into force in 2000.
The EU-Israel Action Plan, agreed in 2005, is based on shared values of democracy, respect for human rights, the rule of law and fundamental freedoms. It promotes the integration of Israel into European policies and programmes. The validity of the plan has been further extended to January 2025.
Bilateral Cooperation
On 28 November 2025, on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Barcelona Declaration, the EU and its Southern Mediterranean partners launched the Pact for the Mediterranean to reinforce the EU’s partnership with the region. On 17 April 2026, the European Commission presented the Action Plan, a first set of key initiatives to advance the implementation of the Pact for the Mediterranean. This is the basis of the current cooperation framework between the EU and Israel.
All cooperation programmes must respect the ‘Guidelines on the eligibility of Israeli entities and their activities in the territories occupied by Israel since June 1967’ published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 19 July 2013.
Israel receives funds from the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument – Global Europe (NDICI-GE) for the period 2021 to 2027, which are mainly used for Technical Assistance and Information Exchange instrument (TAIEX), support to civil society organisations and the European Peacebuilding Initiative. From 2021 to 2024, Israel benefitted from an allocation of €32 million.
The EU-Israel Horizon Europe Association Agreement signed on 6 December 2021 allows continued cooperation in research and innovation for the period 2021-2027.
More on EU funding to Israel: Factograph - EU-Israel relations - European Commission
