There can be no other solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict than a two-state solution, with the building of a Palestinian state alongside Israel. On Monday January 22, European foreign ministers spoke with one voice to support this vision, while Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, reaffirmed, Saturday January 20, his opposition to a “Palestinian sovereignty”.
While the Twenty-Seven still cannot agree to demand with one voice a “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza, still under fire from the Israeli army more than three months after the massive Hamas attack against the Jewish state, they showed a rare unity around a solution, still very distant, but which has been defended since 1980 by Europe and, now, by more and more countries around the world.
“The urgency today is to stop the bombing of Gaza, to free the hostages and to manage the catastrophic humanitarian situation, where around a hundred trucks are now admitted every day, whereas there were 500 before October 7 [2023]recalls Josep Borrell, the head of European diplomacy. However, we must work over the longer term and think about the prospects for breaking the cycle of violence. »
“No alternative”
From a “peace process” in the Middle East, the high representative of the European Union (EU) no longer wants to talk. On the other hand, “We need to start talking more concretely about the two-state solution process.”
Known to be close to Israel, Germany supported this perspective through its Minister of Foreign Affairs, Annalena Baerbock. “There are no alternatives offered at this time. Peace can only exist when it concerns all the inhabitants of the region. »
Mr. Borrell even wondered: “What are the other solutions to which [Israël] think ? Make all the Palestinians leave? Kill them ? » The Israelis “are sowing the seeds of hatred for generations to come”further assured the former Spanish minister, for whom Israel cannot build peace ” only “ by war.
Present for his first council in Brussels, the new head of French diplomacy, Stéphane Séjourné, was much more polite: “Benyamin Netanyahu’s statements are worrying. There will need to be a Palestinian state with security guarantees for all”did he declare.
“Having Israel around the table”
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