LONDON, February 19, 2011 (WAFA) - British Foreign Secretary William Hague Saturday said that his country has voted Friday in favor of a United Nations Security Council resolution condemning Israeli settlements because of Britain’s long standing position against settlements and for a Palestinian state by September.
'I have made clear my serious concern about the current stalemate in the Middle East peace process,” he said.
'The UK voted with others, including France and Germany, to reinforce this and our long-standing view that settlements, including in East Jerusalem, are illegal under international law, an obstacle to peace and constitute a threat to a two-state solution,” said Hague.
Hague called on Palestinians and Israeli to resume negotiations as soon as possible on the basis of clear parameters.
'I call on both parties to return as soon as possible to direct negotiations towards a two-state solution, on the basis of clear parameters,” he said. “Our goal remains an agreement on all final status issues and the welcoming of Palestine as a full member by September 2011. We will contribute to achieving this goal in any and every way that we can.”
Hague said that the international community 'must not be diverted by events in the wider region from working towards a just and lasting resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We believe that Israel's security and the realization of the Palestinians' right to statehood are not opposing goals. On the contrary they are intimately intertwined objectives,” he said.
“We understand Israel's deep and justified security concerns,” he said. 'It is precisely because of those concerns that we vote in favor of this resolution.”
Hague said that Britain believes that “a peaceful and safe future for Israel is best secured through a peace with the Palestinians that in turn can lead to peace with the entire region, and indeed will strengthen the stability of the region. We believe that Israel will be better able to face and tackle wider threats if it is at peace with the Palestinians. And so we regret anything which sets back the prospects for peace because we believe it also sets back Israel's security.”
M.A.
