Leaders Call For 'Pauses' In Israel-Hamas War; EUCO Turns To Migration & MFF

In the first day of the European Council summit in Brussels, lengthy negotiations into the night saw an eventual agreement emerge among member state leaders regarding the bloc's stance towards the Israel-Hamas conflict. After five hours of behind-closed-doors talks, leaders agreed to calling for “pauses for humanitarian needs” in the conflict.Reports allege Spain had been a hold-out, calling for a singular pause (in effect a cease-fire), but won the concession of the text calling for an 'international peace conference', much like the one Spain hosted in 1991.

• It remains to be seen how long this consensus among EU member states can remain in place, especially once Israel begins its long-expected full-scale ground incursion into Gaza. Staunch supporters of Israel such as Austria likely to come up against nations seen as more sympathetic to Palestine such as Spain.

• On the budget, both Hungary and Slovakia objected to the EUR50bn in aid for Ukraine, raising concerns about corruption. Meanwhile, the 'frugals' have also raised objections, calling for reallocation of funds rather than member states providing additional resources.
• On migration, there remains little signal of an agreement being reached between southern states - dealing with the migrants on their borders - and other member states, many of whom are reluctant to take their share of migrants.