Arab and EU countries on board with two-state solution
Arab and EU countries were mostly in agreement on November 27 that a two-state solution was the best way of resolving the troubling situation between Israel and Palestine, reports Union for the Mediterranean.
A two-state solution refers to a proposed framework for resolving the issue between the pair by establishing two states for two peoples, Israel for the Israeli people and Palestine for the Palestinian people.
During the Forum for the Union of the Mediterranean meeting in Barcelona between the 43 countries, The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borell said that virtually all attendees supported the prospect of the solution.
The Spaniard has voiced his opinion on the conflict in the Middle East on multiple occasions and said following the discussions in the Catalonian city, “I believe (it) is the only viable solution, but it will (only) be viable if the international community backs it. Otherwise, we will see a power vacuum that will be fertile ground for all sorts of violent organisations,” .
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Borell,76, also stated that Gaza, which is currently run by militants Hamas, should be led by the Palestinian Authority (PA), who run the highly populated West Bank (2.9 million inhabitants).
Palestine’s Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki said the PA, who lost control of the Gaza Strip in a 2007, did not need to regain power in the enclave noting, “We (PA) have been there all the time, we have 60,000 public workers there.” .
Mr Borell and the European Union more generally were accused of double standards earlier this month following an interview with Al Jazeera. When the diplomat was asked if Israel was commiting war crimes, he avoided the question noting that, “I’m not a lawyer”.
Shortly after, he was asked the same question this time in reference to Hamas in which he said, “Yes… it was the clear killing of civilians without any reason,” .
Union for the Mediterranean