(JTA) – The Council of the European Union “invited” all the bloc’s 27 members to adopt a definition of antisemitism that includes anti-Israel vitriol. The invitation to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition came in a declaration published Wednesday, Dec. 2 by the Council, which is made up of cabinet ministers from all the bloc’s member states. “Member States that have not yet done so are invited to join the other Member States and endorse the IHRA working definition as soon as possible,” reads the document, titled “Council Declaration on Mainstreaming the Fight against Antisemitism across Policy-Areas.” The European Parliament, the EU’s legislative branch, adopted the IHRA definition in 2017, as have dozens of countries.

The IHRA working definition describes various forms of antisemitism, including hatred and discrimination against Jews and Holocaust denial. It also includes examples of anti-Israel criticism it defines as antisemitic, including comparing the country’s policies to those of Nazi Germany, denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination and “applying double standards by requiring of it a behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation.” Criticism of Israel similar to that leveled at any other country is not antisemitic, the definition states.

The Council declaration also speaks of the need to carry out Holocaust education and also of “Protecting Jewish life and making it more visible as part of Europe’s identity.” It does not list concrete actions to achieve this.

In a statement, World Jewish Congress President Ronald S. Lauder called the declaration a “significant step forward in making Europe a better place for Jews.” European Jewish Congress President Moshe Kantor said it was an “important decision” that “appreciates the sad growth of antisemitism.”

Main Photo: President of the European Council Charles Michel attends a virtual meeting with the leaders of Italy, Latvia and Luxembourg in the Europa, the EU Council headquarters, in Brussels, Dec. 2, 2020. (Thierry Monasse/Getty Images)