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Arab and European foreign ministers met in Saudi Arabia's capital, Riyadh, on Monday to discuss how to join forces on advancing a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Saudi Arabia emphasised the need for an “irreversible track” to implement such a solution, one that would deliver the rights of the Palestinian people and also ensure the security of Israel.
“Concrete steps towards the realisation of a Palestinian state in the context of the two-state solution were discussed,” the Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“An increased urgency to take such steps and the importance of co-ordinating positions were emphasised.
“The meeting also discussed the question of recognition of a Palestinian state by countries who have not yet done so, and the timing and context of such recognition.”
Israel is not ready to negotiate, nor is the US prepared to take the necessary leadership in the matter, Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide, one of the meeting's organisers, said afterwards.
“If we want to move this two-state solution forward it will not happen from the parties,” he said. “So, an Arab-European leadership is the best we can hope for.”
The meeting took place on the sidelines of a two-day World Economic Forum special meeting in Riyadh.
The conference was devoted largely to the war in the Gaza Strip, which was triggered by Hamas's unprecedented October 7 attack on southern Israel.
Tangible and irreversible steps towards establishing a Palestinian state would be an essential component of any deal for a durable ceasefire, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said.
“The continued rejection of the two-state solution will inevitably undermine the security and stability of the region,” Prince Faisal said at the Arab-European meeting, which was also attended by Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.
The meeting emphasised the need to adopt a holistic approach to a two-state solution “in accordance with international law and agreed parameters, including the United Nations Security Council resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative”, the foreign ministry statement said.
“The main question is what really happens on the Palestinian issue,” Aziz Alghashian, who researches Saudi Arabia's foreign policy on Israel, told The National. “A credible peace process, irreversible steps – this is the kind of language that has been consistently coming out of the foreign ministry in Saudi Arabia.
“But what are these steps? How can we define these steps? These are yet to be defined. This illustrates that while there is momentum going forward on any deal, there is still some way to go on the fleshing out of the details,” Mr Alghashian said.
Normalise relations
On Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said his country was almost ready with a security package to offer Saudi Arabia if it normalises relations with Israel, as he sought incentives for Israel to support a Palestinian state.
Mr Blinken was visiting Riyadh on his seventh trip to the region since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, which has responded with a relentless offensive in Gaza that has drawn global criticism.
Prince Faisal, who met Mr Blinken in Riyadh, also said US-Saudi agreements were “very, very close” and “most of the work has already been done”.
But the Saudi foreign minister repeated his government's insistence that a pathway to a Palestinian state was “the only way it's going to work”.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Results
6.30pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-2 Group 1 (PA) US$75,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
Winner: Ziyadd, Richard Mullen (jockey), Jean de Roualle (trainer).
7.05pm: Al Rashidiya Group 2 (TB) $250,000 (Turf) 1,800m
Winner: Barney Roy, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
7.40pm: Meydan Cup Listed Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 2,810m
Winner: Secret Advisor, Tadhg O’Shea, Charlie Appleby.
8.15pm: Handicap (TB) $175,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Plata O Plomo, Carlos Lopez, Susanne Berneklint.
8.50pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: Salute The Soldier, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass.
9.25pm: Al Shindagha Sprint Group 3 (TB) $200,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Gladiator King, Mickael Barzalona, Satish Seemar.
Read more about the coronavirus
MATCH INFO
Tottenham Hotspur 1
Kane (50')
Newcastle United 0
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Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
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CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
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Key recommendations
- Fewer criminals put behind bars and more to serve sentences in the community, with short sentences scrapped and many inmates released earlier.
- Greater use of curfews and exclusion zones to deliver tougher supervision than ever on criminals.
- Explore wider powers for judges to punish offenders by blocking them from attending football matches, banning them from driving or travelling abroad through an expansion of ‘ancillary orders’.
- More Intensive Supervision Courts to tackle the root causes of crime such as alcohol and drug abuse – forcing repeat offenders to take part in tough treatment programmes or face prison.
Company profile
Date started: December 24, 2018
Founders: Omer Gurel, chief executive and co-founder and Edebali Sener, co-founder and chief technology officer
Based: Dubai Media City
Number of employees: 42 (34 in Dubai and a tech team of eight in Ankara, Turkey)
Sector: ConsumerTech and FinTech
Cashflow: Almost $1 million a year
Funding: Series A funding of $2.5m with Series B plans for May 2020
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
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- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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