Physical Address
Indirizzo: Via Mario Greco 60, Buttigliera Alta, 10090, Torino, Italy
The Minister of Foreign Affairs and the National Community Abroad, Ahmed Attaf, has been in Brues, capital of the Kingdom of Belgium, since this Sunday afternoon to participate in an Arab-European ministerial meeting on the Palestinian question.
This meeting comes at the request of the President of the Republic, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, and follows the first edition which was held in Riyadh at the end of last April and which brought together a group of Arab and European countries in as part of a joint diplomatic effort aimed primarily at promoting a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and strengthening the dynamic of diplomatic recognition of the State of Palestine.
Algeria is participating in this meeting in its capacity as an Arab member of the Security Council and by virtue of its efforts in favor of the Palestinian cause, in particular to put an end to the ongoing Israeli aggression against Gaza as well as to advance the file of the accession of the State of Palestine, as a full member, to the United Nations.
As a reminder, Riyadh hosted a coordination meeting last month to support efforts to implement the two-state solution and recognize the State of Palestine.
This meeting, which saw the participation of foreign ministers from a group of Arab countries, members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and European countries, focused on “the means and prospects for acceleration of the implementation of the two-state solution and the recognition of the Palestinian state as a just, lasting and definitive solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict,” according to the terms of a press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In a speech delivered at this meeting last April, Mr. Attaf affirmed that “the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state remains the very essence of any solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict,” adding that this is “the main and inescapable challenge and the sine qua non condition for any serious peace process”.
The minister recalled, in this context, the historical facts linked to the Palestinian question, starting with UN resolution 181, emphasizing “the impossibility of achieving peace and security in the Middle East without allowing the Palestinians to exercise their legitimate rights, at their head the inalienable right to the establishment of their independent and sovereign State, with El-Quds as its capital.”
Furthermore, Attaf stressed that it is encouraging to see more and more countries committing to recognizing the Palestinian state, calling on them to “realize this important and crucial step towards achieving security and peace in the Middle East, and the preservation of the two-state solution, prey to systematic undermining by the occupying authority.”
According to observers who covered the meeting from Riyadh, participants exchanged views and consulted on practical measures needed to end Zionist aggression in Gaza. There was also talk of relaunching the political path which involves the implementation of the two-state solution, including the long-awaited step of recognition of the Palestinian state, the process of which is already underway.
This meeting comes at a time when many states have warned against a possible invasion of Rafah, in southern Gaza, stressing that it would lead to a humanitarian catastrophe, disastrous consequences for the Palestinians and neighboring countries, as well as ‘has significant repercussions for all other parties.
At the end of this first edition, the participating countries underlined their commitment to a global approach to find a definitive solution to the conflict in the region and especially to Israeli aggression. Today, Europeans consider that the recognition of the Palestinian state is an inherent right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and this is an urgent decision to guarantee a reliable and irreversible path towards the implementation of the solution to two states.
The recent recognition of three European countries of the State of Palestine (Ireland, Norway and Spain) is an important step in the process of creating a sovereign Palestinian state.
Finally, according to international media, this Brussels meeting will see the participation of foreign ministers and representatives of Algeria, Bahrain, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Palestine , Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Slovenia, Turkey, the United Kingdom, as well as representatives of the European Union and the Arab League.