"Protracted conflict in the Middle East has affected regional and global peace as well as stability. The UNSC must be able to deliver real progress in resolving Middle East issues, particularly concerning Palestine," Foreign Minister Marsudi remarked while chairing the UNSC meeting, noted the Foreign Affairs Ministry's written statement received in Jakarta on Thursday.
The meeting to deliberate on the Middle East situation was led by the Indonesian foreign minister in Indonesia's capacity as the UNSC president for May 2019, and all members of the Security Council were in attendance.
The meeting was held to get the latest updates on the current situation in the Middle East, including the issue of Palestine, Syria, and Yemen. Through a video conference, the recent developments in the Middle East were delivered by the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process (UNSCO) Nickolay Mladenov and the Commissioner General of the United Nations Agency for Refugee Affairs (UNRWA) Pierre Krähenbühl.
At the meeting, the issue concerning the situation in Palestine was of specific concern to Indonesia. The Indonesian foreign minister noted that since the same meeting in January, there was no improvement in the situation in the Middle East, especially in Palestine, but on the contrary had deteriorated.
This was apparent from the new wave of violence in early May 2019 while the presence of international organizations in Hebron and the continued development of illegal settlements on Palestinian land had continued to worsen the humanitarian situation in Palestine.
In addition to the Palestinian issue, the Indonesian foreign minister reiterated that the security condition in the Middle East will impact the global security situation. Hence, the UN Security Council should ensure concrete progress.
The meeting, led by the Indonesian foreign minister, demonstrates Indonesia's seriousness to the peace process in the Middle East, particularly the issue of peace in Palestine. During its membership in the Security Council, Indonesia has consistently voiced the struggle of the Palestinian people as one of the priority issues.
Translator: Eliswan Azly
Editor: Suharto
Copyright © ANTARA 2019
