BICOM

Israel has reportedly sent the European Union (EU) a proposal to resolve a dispute on funding guidelines, which has cast doubt over Israel’s participation in the EU’s flagship research project.

EU and Israeli representatives have been negotiating to find a way for Israel to join the Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme, which aims to create jobs and fuel economic growth. Israel is the only non-EU country to be invited as a full participant in the programme and has until the end of this month to sign up.

The EU adopted new funding guidelines in July which specify that all future EU grants and prizes should exclude Israeli entities based in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights.

According to Haaretz, Israeli officials have submitted what they describe as a “far reaching” proposal to resolve the impasse. Apparently, it includes an additional section which stipulates that although Israel accepts the funding prohibitions to organisations beyond the pre-1967 borders, this does not prejudge the permanent borders to be determined in negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Haaretz reports that EU Ambassador to Israel, Lars Faaborg-Andersen gathered the ambassadors to Israel of EU member states on Monday to present Israel’s proposal. Apparently Faaborg-Andersen expressed optimism that wording acceptable to both sides will be agreed during the coming days.

Meanwhile, the Knesset passed a bill last night allowing Israel to become a full member of the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), having previously been an associate member. Located in Geneva, CERN hosts the high-energy particle accelerator used to discover the Higgs-Boson particle.