No substitute for Palestinian right to statehood — FM

AMMAN — Achieving economic development and improving the living conditions of Palestinians is not a substitute for their wider rights to statehood and freedom, Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said on Thursday in New York.

During a meeting with the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC), formed to distribute aid to the Palestinian people, Safadi said that “economic development does not create peace, but is necessary in protecting it once it is achieved through the establishment of an independent Palestinian state along the June 4, 1967 lines with East Jerusalem as its capital,” according to a Foreign Ministry statement. 

The meeting was attended by Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh, as well as the Tunisian and Turkish foreign ministers and officials from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the US, Canada, Italy and France among other nations. 

The international community is faced with a legal, humanitarian and moral responsibility to protect the Palestinian peoples' rights to free and dignified living and salvage chances for comprehensive peace by being “firmly and clearly” against illegal Israeli practices that eliminate chances of security. 

The foreign minister pointed to the importance of international aid in the plight, to ease the “suffocating” economic crisis impacting the Palestinian people as a result of the occupation’s measures. 

Safadi also met with his counterparts who are participating in the General Assembly meetings working to further economic cooperation and resolve regional crises. 

He took part in a meeting with the Small Group on Syria, which was attended by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, UK Minister of State for the Commonwealth, the UN and South Asia Lord Tariq Ahmad, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri and Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel Jubeir. 

During the meeting, Safadi stressed the importance of establishing a constitutional committee to achieve a political solution to the Syrian crisis — one that maintains its unity and restores its peace and stability. 

Safadi noted the need for greater efforts to provide resources, embed security and set the stage for the voluntary return of refugees. 

Jordan has been overwhelmingly burdened, as it has hosted more than 1 million Syrians, Safadi said, noting that the international community has a responsibility to support Jordan in that regard. 

Furthermore, in an interview with Sky News Arabia, Safadi reiterated that, as affirmed by His Majesty King Abdullah, the security of Saudi Arabia and the UAE is tied to Jordan’s security, noting the Kingdom’s support for any measures taken by these countries to protect their safety. 

Safadi said that any military escalation in the Arab Gulf region would be “disastrous” and called for deescalation of tensions through dialogue. 

The minister participated in a number of events on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) meetings, including a ministerial meeting on unity for multilateralism. He took part in the ministerial meeting of the AHLC and met with UN Secretary General António Guterres on nuclear disarmament. 

Safadi also attended an annual dinner that posed the question of whether regional challenges will lead to a new security system. He also participated in a seminar organised by the International Crisis Group that featured a significant discussion on the future of the regional security strategy.