Slovenian President Nataša Pirc Musar condemned Europe’s silence on Israel’s genocide in Gaza, accusing the EU of hypocrisy for backing Ukraine while failing to act against Israel.
Slovenian President Nataša Pirc Musar sharply criticised Europe’s response to Israel’s war in Gaza during a lecture at Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU) on Monday, describing the European Union’s inaction as a moral failure and a sign of double standards compared with its stance on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“We are watching the genocide in Gaza, we are quiet, and we are not doing anything,” Pirc Musar said in her address, titled “Realities of Multipolarism vs. the Need for Multilateralism,” delivered as part of her official visit to Qatar.
Earlier in the day, she held talks with Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani at the Amiri Diwan. “During our discussions, we affirmed the shared commitment of our two countries to strengthening cooperation across all fields,” Sheikh Tamim wrote in a post on X.
Elected in 2022 as Slovenia’s first female head of state, Pirc Musar discussed shifting global power dynamics and the need for consistent adherence to international law and human rights. A major focus of her lecture was Europe’s uneven response to the war in Gaza, a topic that drew wide interest from attendees and journalists, including Doha News.
Reflecting on her address to the European Parliament in May, she recalled urging 650 lawmakers to take action: “Everybody was there, 650 MPs, and I said, we are watching the genocide in Gaza, we are quiet, and we are not doing anything.” Her remarks then received a standing ovation after she directly condemned Israel’s actions in Gaza as genocide.
Speaking in Doha, Pirc Musar drew a sharp contrast between Europe’s unified approach to Russia, marked by sanctions and military support for Ukraine, and its paralysis on Israel. “We see a lot of unity on sanctions against Russia and on financial and military support for Ukraine. But when it comes to sanctions on Israel, there is no unity,” she said.
In July, Slovenia became the first European country to ban the import, export, and transit of weapons to and from Israel, after warning that it would act independently if the EU failed to do so. “Due to internal disagreements and divisions, the European Union is currently unable to act. The result is disgraceful: people in Gaza are dying as humanitarian aid is systematically blocked,” Slovenia’s prime minister said at the time.
Pirc Musar confirmed that her government had imposed bilateral sanctions against Israel, adding that “a couple of politicians from Israel are persona non grata in my country – Benjamin Netanyahu among them.”
She also pointed to economic and historical factors driving Europe’s reluctance to act, including strong trade ties with Israel and lingering Holocaust guilt in countries such as Germany and Austria. “Money talks and bullshit walks,” she said candidly. “Those are remains of the past because of the Holocaust and the collective guilt inside of those two nations.”
Pirc Musar dismissed claims that recognising Palestine would be symbolic or insufficient, saying: “This is only the first step. If you are advocating a two-state solution, don’t you think it’s hypocrisy if you recognise one state and not the other?”
Throughout her lecture, she urged consistency and courage in global leadership. “Multilateralism is so important because we have to be satisfied, all of us, not only one country deciding for everyone,” she said.
