Israeli Minister Vows to Cut Contact with EU Diplomat Kaja Kallas Over Remarks

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar vowed on Thursday to cut contact with top EU diplomat Kaja Kallas, triggering a public spat that Kallas later tried — and failed — to defuse.

“Ms. Kaja Kallas … has for some time now been acting obsessively and with blatant unfairness toward the State of Israel,” Sa’ar wrote on X Thursday morning, referring to reports last month that Kallas had compared Israel’s treatment of Palestinians to apartheid-era South Africa. Sa’ar accused the EU’s foreign policy chief of directing a “blood libel” at Israel and said he would “sever all contact with Ms. Kallas” until she retracted the remarks.

Kallas has not publicly confirmed or denied the account but attempted to mend fences on Thursday.

“Dear Gideon, as you know, the EU and Israel have a lot that binds us,” she wrote on X. “Dialogue is the foundation of diplomacy, especially when differences arise.” Kallas also reiterated the EU’s support for a two-state solution and condemned Israeli settlements in the West Bank, describing them as an obstacle to peace.

But the olive branch did not land.

“With all due respect, even in your remarks here you refrain from denying or condemning what has been attributed to you and published publicly,” responded Sa’ar. “If you did indeed make these vile and defamatory statements, stand behind them. If you did not make them, deny it.”

The clash comes as EU leaders gather in Brussels for a European Council summit, where divisions over Israel are expected to resurface. Calls from some capitals to sanction Israeli ministers and curb trade linked to West Bank settlements are likely to fall short, with Czechia vowing to block tougher measures.