Foreign ministers urge end to Gaza war, push two-state path while coordinating aid and reconstruction

Foreign ministers and senior diplomats at a multilateral session on the Israel-Palestine crisis said stopping the war in Gaza must be the immediate priority and outlined steps they say are needed for a durable two-state outcome.

The diplomats described complementary short-term and long-term tasks: secure a ceasefire and increase humanitarian access to Gaza now, while preserving and building Palestinian institutions for a future state. They cited a recent United Nations General Assembly declaration endorsing a two-state solution and discussed whether that declaration and the U.S. "21" plan could be reconciled or aligned.

A senior diplomat said, "The U.S. proposals focus on finding an end to the war in Gaza, which obviously needs to be our immediate priority," and added that ending the war is a "prerequisite to moving forward on the issue of Palestinian statehood." The attendee described the New York declaration as having "very clear process and very clear and practical mechanisms to translate into a future Palestinian state"…