UNSC: India Raises Concern Over Indian Ocean Traffic Safety While Members Stress For Two-State Solution (representational image @Pixabay)
Deputy permanent Representative of India at UN R Ravindra told the members of Security Council that the ongoing Israel-Hamas war is impacting the safety of maritime commercial traffic in the Indian Ocean, including some attacks in parts that under the vicinity of India. He made the remarks during a UNSC Open Debate on the Middle East.
He said, “this is a matter of great concern to international community and has a direct bearing on India’s own energy and economic interests. This fraught situation is not to mention the benefit of any party, and this must be clearly recognized”, as quoted by media report.
Ravindra said that India’s message since the start of the Middle East conflict is clear and consistent – it is important to prevent the escalation and to ensure the continued delivery of humanitarian aid. He said that the humanitarian situation in region must be addressed in earnest and added that India welcomes the efforts of UN and international community in this regard.
He highlighted that India has delivered shipments of relief material to the Palestinians in Gaza. He said that India has provided total USD 5 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA), which will got to support the Agency’s core programmes like education, healthcare, relief and social services.
R Ravindra reiterated India’s long-standing support of two-state solution where the Palestinians will be able to live freely in an independent country with secure borders, with due regards to the security needs of Israel. He said only two-state solution, achieved through direct and meaningful negotiation between both sides on final status issue, will bring peace that the people of Israel and Palestine desire and deserve. “For this we urge all parties to de-escalate, eschew violence, avoid provocative and escalatory actions, and work towards creating conditions for an early resumption of direct peace negotiation”.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres told the Security Council that any refusal to accept the establishment of two-state solution by any party must be firmly rejected. He stressed that Israeli leaders’ recent, clear and repeated rejection of the two-state solution is unacceptable. He said the denial of the right to the Statehood would definitely prolong the conflict. According the UN Secretary General, one-state solution, where a huge population of Palestinians inside without any real sense of freedom, rights and dignity would be inconceivable. Guterres underscored that the only possible way to address the legitimate aspirations of both Israelis and Palestinians is through the two-state solution.
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates of the State of Palestine, Riyal Al-Maliki said that the Israeli leaders “do not see our people as empirical and political reality to coexist with, but as a demographic threat to get rid of through death, displacement on subjugation.
Israel’s representative urged the Security Council to shift its focus towards the real, significant security threats in the Middle East, which is suffering from “cancer” in the form of the continuous threat posed by Hamas, which exploits the international aid to turn Gaza into a “war machine”, as well as the “genocidal goals od annihilating Israel”, which was pursued by Hamas on October 7th. He described the Security Council members call for two-state solution as “shocking”. He said two-state solution will leave Hamas in power and allow them to regroup and rearm while “Israelis will face another Holocaust”.
Sergei Lavrov, the Russian Foreign Minister said that the council has not mounted an appropriate response to the situation due to the potion of United States. He said there should be world order not based on Anglo Saxon rules but on international law with UN playing a central role. He said western countries are focusing the day after the Israel-Palestine conflict, as if the war on Gaza had already ceased. He added that the cunning logic of Western delegations is obvious, as they have blocked all council efforts to call for an acutely necessary ceasefire.
With inputs from agencies.
