BRICS leaders (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) have called on the world community to support direct negotiations to resolve the Palestine-Israel conflict on the basis of a “two-state solution” leading to the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state, according to a statement from the Extraordinary Summit of the group of major emerging economies on the situation in the Middle East.
Hosted online by South Africa – the country holding the rotating BRICS presidency – on November 21, the conference was attended by the heads of state of Brazil, Russia, and China, while India was represented by Foreign Minister Jaishankar.
The meeting was also attended by representatives of Middle East and North African countries, including Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Ethiopia, which have been invited to join BRICS starting in January 2024. Egypt also sent a representative. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also attended the conference.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who chaired the emergency BRICS meeting, condemned Israel's actions in the Gaza Strip, calling for an "immediate and comprehensive ceasefire" and the deployment of a UN force "to monitor the cessation of hostilities and protect civilians".
“As individual nations, we have expressed our deep concern at the death and destruction in Gaza. Let this meeting be a clarion call for us to unite our efforts and intensify our actions to end it.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends the emergency BRICS summit held online, November 21, 2023. Photo: Kremlin.ru
Chinese President Xi Jinping, speaking at a virtual summit on November 21, called for an “international peace conference” to resolve the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
“There can be no lasting peace and security in the Middle East without a just solution to the Palestine issue,” Xi said through an interpreter.
Since the latest Palestinian-Israeli conflict erupted, China has been actively pushing for peace talks and a ceasefire, with Beijing providing assistance “to help alleviate the humanitarian plight in Gaza,” something Xi said his country intended to continue doing.
Speaking at the conference, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the international community should join forces to find a political solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict, while affirming that Moscow's stance "is consistent and does not change according to the situation".
According to Mr. Putin, the BRICS countries and countries of the region can play a key role in this work. “This is why the participation of our colleagues from the Middle East in today's meeting, who have been invited to join BRICS as full members, is especially important,” the Russian leader noted.
Mr Putin stressed the need to achieve a lasting and sustainable ceasefire, calling it “the most urgent goal”. The Russian president added: “It is important to prevent other countries from being drawn into the war in the Middle East and to prevent the conflict from spreading, as well as to maintain the fragile inter-religious peace”.
Egyptian doctors stand next to an incubator to receive premature Palestinian babies evacuated from Gaza, at the Rafah border crossing, November 20, 2023. Photo: AFP/Straits Times
Also on November 21, the Israeli Cabinet approved a deal under which at least 50 hostages - women and children - held by Hamas in Gaza will be released, in exchange for a four-day ceasefire in Israel's air and ground campaign in the strip, CNN (US) quoted a statement from the Israeli government.
The ceasefire will be extended by one day for every additional 10 hostages released, the statement said, potentially extending beyond the original four-day period. The statement also made clear that Israel plans to continue its air and ground campaign “to complete the destruction of Hamas” after the release of the hostages.
The statement made no mention of the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, although this is understood to be a key part of the deal. Earlier reports on 21 November suggested that around 150 Palestinian prisoners – mostly women and children – would be released.
The deal was approved by a significant majority of the Israeli Cabinet, a government source told CNN. A more detailed statement will be sent to the hostages' families later in the day, the Israeli government statement said .
Minh Duc (According to TASS, CNN, RFI)
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