Dear Prime Minister Mustafa, Foreign Minister Eide, dear Espen,
It is a pleasure to have you here in Brussels for two important meetings. After this press conference, we will convene Ad Hoc Liaison Committee, and this morning, we already had the Global Alliance for the implementation of the two-state solution.
The Middle East stands at the moment of risk and opportunity. The fragile ceasefires with Iran and Lebanon offer a narrow window to de-escalate, but of course, both cease fires come with an expired date. Diplomacy must deliver on the region, or we will slide back into war.
In the Strait of Hormuz there are daily U- turns over whether the waterway is open or closes. Any pay for passage scheme would set the dangerous precedent for global maritime routes.
In addition, regional actors and the European Union agree that there are other concerns besides the nuclear issue that need to be addressed, like the missile programme and the proxies that need to be addressed in the negotiations.
While much attention is on Iran and Lebanon, our meetings here show that we are not losing sight of Gaza and the West Bank. Wars ripple borders and what happens in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict always affects the entire region.
I often hear accusations of double standards. That we support Ukraine, but we do not support the Palestinians. And let me get this straight: Europe is the biggest supporter of the Palestinian people. Europe is the largest donor and the main backer of the Palestinian Authority, European missions on the ground support Palestinian police, justice and governance and border management. You will not find a stronger supporter of the Palestinian people anywhere in the world.
Today the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee will focus on the next steps to support Gaza and the West Bank and I thank Espen for Norway’s long-standing leadership on this. After years of war, we have to be honest that the needle on the two-state solution has not moved much; yet it remains the most viable path to the Middle East without war.
For the two-state solution to have a fighting chance, both sides must deliver. Israel must stop its settlement expansion, settler crimes need to be punished, Israel must release the withheld tax revenues – this money belongs to Palestinian people.
At the same time, Palestinian Authority needs to move with reforms in Gaza. Hamas refusal to disarm remains a major obstacle to peace. The Palestinian police and the International Stabilization Force need to deploy to Gaza as soon as possible to prevent further consolidation of power by Hamas.
Today, we also discuss governance. It is important that the Palestinian Authority and the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza work together, not cross purposes. The EU fully supports the Gaza peace plan based on UN Security Council Resolution 2803, and today’s meeting aims to keep all actors focused on that plan.
It was good to hear from the High Representative, Nickolay Mladenov, on the state of play. And by the way, it was also the first time that the High Representative Mladenov and the Prime Minister Mustafa met in person.
Finally, we will address recovery. The final Gaza Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment sets out what will be necessary. Rebuilding Gaza is estimated to cost at least €71 billion. And we have been working four months with World Bank, the UN and the European Union on this assessment – it has been released today.
Prime Minister Mustafa, Foreign Minister Eide, the Ad Hoc Committee has long been a key forum for supporting the Palestinian Authority and advancing state building. It is good that you are here to address these issues, and with that, Foreign Minister, over to you.