European Union flags flutter outside the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. Reuters
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar is expected to meet with his counterparts from the EU's 27 nations and the bloc's top diplomat Kaja Kallas in Brussels on February 24, the commission said.
"We will discuss the full range of issues with Israel, including the war in Gaza, regional issues, global issues and bilateral EU-Israel relations," said commission spokesman Anouar El Anouni.
The gathering will take place on the sidelines of the EU's foreign affairs council.
Similarly, Kallas will co-chair with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa "the first ever EU Palestinian high level dialogue" on the margins of the following foreign affairs council -- a meeting of EU top diplomats -- on March 17.
"This will be an opportunity to discuss the EU support for the Palestinians and the full range of regional and also bilateral issues," El Anouni said.
Mustafa is a representative of the Palestinian Authority, which governs the West Bank.
The announcement came as Israel and the Palestinians took part in the third prisoner-captive exchange under the Gaza ceasefire.
A truce -- mediated by Qatar, the United States and Egypt -- between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas began on January 19 after more than 15 months of Israeli war on Gaza.
It calls for 33 Israeli captives captured on October 7, 2023, to be freed in exchange for around 1,900 people -- mostly Palestinians -- detained in Israeli prisons.
EU countries, which include staunch allies of Israel as well as firm supporters of the Palestinians, have struggled for a unified position on the Gaza war.
"The EU is fully committed to a just, comprehensive and lasting peace based on the two-state solution, where Israel and Palestine live side-by-side in peace and security," the commission said.
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