Leaders from the BRICS countries have called for direct peace talks in the Middle East to end the conflict.
President Cyril Ramaphosa presided over the BRICS summit, which called for Middle East peace.
On Tuesday, the leaders of the BRICS countries issued a joint statement in which they stated their support for a peaceful resolution to the conflict. UN Secretary-General António Guterres and new BRICS members attended the summit.
As the war in the Middle East escalates, President Cyril Ramaphosa called an emergency meeting of the bloc’s leaders.
Ramaphosa was joined in the virtual summit by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
More on this later.
Ramaphosa reiterates his call for the International Criminal Court to investigate war crimes and calls for a UN rapid deployment force.
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The BRICS leaders agreed in the statement that the conflict must be resolved, and that this requires direct talks between all parties involved in the conflict.
“We reaffirmed that only through peaceful means can a just and lasting solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict be achieved.” “The chair joined calls for the international community to support direct negotiations based on international law, including relevant UN Security Council and General Assembly resolutions, as well as the Arab Peace Initiative, leading to the establishment of a sovereign, independent, and viable state of Palestine,” BRICS leaders said.
“We reiterated our strong support for regional and international efforts to achieve an immediate cessation of hostilities, ensure civilian protection, and provide humanitarian aid,” the leaders said.
They applauded regional efforts to resolve the conflict.
This includes the Arab League and the Organization for Islamic Cooperation.
Last week, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman hosted a summit at which the issue of Palestine was prominent.
Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi also hosted another summit a few weeks ago to try to resolve the conflict.
The BRICS leaders condemned all forms of violence and urged peace in the Middle East.
They were concerned about Palestine’s deteriorating situation.
“We expressed our grave concern about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.” “We reiterated the need for full, immediate, safe, unhindered, and sustained humanitarian access and aid provision in accordance with the basic principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence established in UNGA (United Nations General Assembly) resolution 46/182,” the BRICS leaders said.