BRUSSELS 

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas urged Israel on Tuesday to take concrete steps to improve the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, warning that the bloc is prepared to respond if Israel fails to meet the pledges.

Speaking at a press conference following the EU foreign ministers' meeting in Brussels, Kallas said the bloc will closely monitor Israel's implementation of agreed pledges, with compliance updates every two weeks. She stressed that a ceasefire and the release of hostages remain top priorities for EU ministers.

"At the request of the European Council, I also presented ministers an inventory of different measures that could be taken in relation to the review done in June. So we had a discussion on this, and these are choices that the member states have to make. We will keep these options on the table and stand ready to act if Israel does not live up to its pledges," she said.

"The aim is not to punish Israel. The aim is to really improve the situation in Gaza," she added.

Kallas also condemned Russia's escalating bombing campaign in Ukraine, describing it as reaching record levels.

"And we see increasing use of banned chemical weapons by Russia in Ukraine. All this shows that Russia does not want peace, and in response, the EU is set to prove one of its toughest sanctions package against Russia," she said.

Kallas expressed disappointment that EU member states failed to reach an agreement on the bloc's latest sanctions package against Russia. She noted that the European Commission had met the conditions requested by Slovakia, which has yet to give its approval.

"The Commission has delivered what was asked for. Now the ball is in Slovakia's court," she said.