Spain hosted a high-level meeting on Friday, gathering several Muslim and European nations to discuss solutions to the ongoing Gaza war and advocate for the implementation of a two-state resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares emphasized that “the two-state solution is the only way” to end the continuous violence between Israelis and Palestinians.
The meeting included representatives from countries such as Norway, Slovenia, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Turkey, as well as Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa and the EU’s foreign policy chief.
Although Israel was absent, Albares noted a shared commitment among participants to take concrete steps toward implementing the two-state solution, including advocating for Palestine’s membership in the United Nations.
Israel was not included in the meeting because it is not a member of the contact group, according to Albares, who added, “We will be delighted to see Israel at any table where peace and the two-state solution are discussed.”
On May 28, Spain, Norway, and Ireland officially recognized a unified Palestinian state governed by the Palestinian Authority, encompassing the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem as the capital. With this recognition, 146 out of 193 UN member states now recognize Palestinian statehood.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has emphasized that the only path to peace is the co-existence of two sovereign states in the territory of former Mandatory Palestine.
The two-state solution was initially outlined in the 1991 Madrid Conference and the 1993-95 Oslo Accords, though the peace process has been stagnant for years.
The search for peace has become more urgent due to the 11-month Gaza war between Israel and Hamas one of the deadliest phases of the conflict as well as rising violence in the West Bank.
The West Bank, including East Jerusalem, was seized by Israel during the 1967 Middle East war and has been under Israeli occupation ever since, with growing Jewish settlements complicating peace efforts.
In 1980, Israel annexed East Jerusalem, a move that lacked widespread international recognition. Israel maintains that its security is a top priority.
Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide stated that the meeting also needed to address the disarmament of Hamas, which governed Gaza before the conflict, as well as the normalization of relations between Israel and other countries, particularly Saudi Arabia.
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