TO coincide with the beginning of a landmark conference, sponsored by Saudi Arabia and France in New York and aimed at charting a path toward peace and a sovereign Palestinian State, Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has outlined a pragmatic course that the international community ought to pursue as part of the efforts to move towards durable solution of the conflict in the Middle-East.
In an interview, he emphasized that serious efforts should be made to secure an immediate ceasefire, and second, to ensure the unhindered flow of food, humanitarian aid and medical assistance — alongside progress toward the recognition of Palestine as an independent state.
The proposal is in line with the overall but consistent position of Pakistan on the dispute – the two-state solution is the only answer to the Palestinian problem. Pakistan unequivocally supports the Palestinian cause and their right to self-determination — specifically, the establishment of an independent and contiguous State of Palestine with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital, based on the pre-1967 borders. Saudi Arabia’s ‘Land for Peace’ initiative of 2002 also proposed a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace in exchange for Israel’s full withdrawal from Arab territories occupied in 1967 (including the West Bank, Gaza Strip and Golan Heights) and the resolution of the Palestinian refugee issue according to UN General Assembly Resolution 194. It envisaged that in return for this withdrawal and the establishment of an independent Palestinian State with East Jerusalem as its capital, Arab States would normalize relations with Israel. However, this widely acclaimed proposal with prospects of permanent peace in the region could not translate into reality as the Jewish State believed in the use of force for settlement of disputes and this is amply explained by what is happening in Gaza which has been turned into ruins due to barbaric bombing and now plans are conceived to control the territory and annex occupied Arab lands. The international community has spoken repeatedly on the issues of Palestine and even the International Court of Justice delivered a historic verdict last year. In this backdrop, the question arises who will ensure implementation of the decisions or recommendations of the conference. Pakistan has been rightly emphasizing that all United Nations resolutions — particularly those of the Security Council, which is responsible for maintaining global peace and security — must be implemented and if these resolutions are respected, the solution becomes clear and achievable.
Pakistan is leveraging its UN Security Council presidency to advocate diplomacy over violence. It is noteworthy that an open debate under Pakistan’s presidency on the ‘peaceful settlement of disputes’ achieved a rare consensus on the need for resolution of the conflicts through dialogue. However, in the backdrop of consistent violation of the international law, there is all the more urgency to reform the UN system so that its working and outcomes reflect aspirations and will of the international community in real sense. As for Gaza, it is regrettable that Palestinians are being pressured to accept terms for a ceasefire that are clearly against their national interests. It is all the more unfortunate that the carnage is continuing for the last two years with full connivance of the world’s only super power. What a pity that the UN is watching silently and the international community is sitting idly when aid convoys are being targeted by the Jewish State and people facing death with starvation are bombed repeatedly. We hope that the conference will come out with actionable proposals to realize the objectives of ceasefire and unhindered distribution of food/medicines. This should be followed by initiation of a comprehensive rehabilitation programme for the population uprooted by massive bombings and restoration of the badly damaged infrastructure. The plans to recognize Palestinian State are appreciable but it should be a state as envisaged by the world community through numerous resolutions of the UN and not a squeezed one as planned by the Jewish State and its backers.
