United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres pushes countries to “take irreversible action toward implementing a two-state solution” between Israel and the Palestinians ahead of an international conference in June.
“I encourage Member States to go beyond affirmations, and to think creatively about the concrete steps they will take to support a viable two-state solution before it is too late,” Guterres tells a Security Council meeting on the Middle East.
France and Saudi Arabia will co-host the conference at the United Nations in June.
“Our objective is clear: to make progress on the recognition of Palestine and the normalization of relations with Israel at the same time,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot tells the Security Council.
“This is how we will be able to guarantee Israel’s security and its regional integration, whilst responding to the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinians to have their own state,” he says.
He says the road map for the effective implementation of the two-state solution also required the disarming of the Palestinian terror group Hamas, defining a credible government structure in the Gaza Strip that will exclude Hamas, and the reform of the Palestinian Authority.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said numerous times that Israel will not allow the Palestinian Authority to play any role in the governance of the Gaza Strip. He also told French President Emmanuel Macron earlier this month that the establishment of a Palestinian state would be a “huge prize for terror.”
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“I encourage Member States to go beyond affirmations, and to think creatively about the concrete steps they will take to support a viable two-state solution before it is too late,” Guterres tells a Security Council meeting on the Middle East.
France and Saudi Arabia will co-host the conference at the United Nations in June.
“Our objective is clear: to make progress on the recognition of Palestine and the normalization of relations with Israel at the same time,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot tells the Security Council.
“This is how we will be able to guarantee Israel’s security and its regional integration, whilst responding to the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinians to have their own state,” he says.
He says the road map for the effective implementation of the two-state solution also required the disarming of the Palestinian terror group Hamas, defining a credible government structure in the Gaza Strip that will exclude Hamas, and the reform of the Palestinian Authority.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said numerous times that Israel will not allow the Palestinian Authority to play any role in the governance of the Gaza Strip. He also told French President Emmanuel Macron earlier this month that the establishment of a Palestinian state would be a “huge prize for terror.”
UN chief says countries must take ‘concrete steps’ toward supporting two-state solution ‘before it’s too late’
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