IDNAround.com – Indonesia is currently undertaking efforts to garner more countries’ recognition of the Palestinian State, seeing such acknowledgment as a crucial step towards achieving a lasting ceasefire in the conflict-ridden Gaza Strip.
Recently, Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi participated in a ministerial meeting of the Developing-8 (D-8) economic bloc in Turkey. Comprising Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Turkey, all D-8 member nations dispatched their ministers to Istanbul to discuss the situation in Gaza. Notably, all D-8 members are also part of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), another group actively involved in de-escalating tensions in Gaza.
According to Retno, Indonesia has been advocating for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza. However, to achieve this, global recognition of Palestine as a sovereign state is deemed essential.
“Before attaining a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, there are certain steps that we must take to assist Palestine. Firstly, D-8 countries must continue leveraging their influence to encourage more nations to recognize the Palestinian state,” Retno stated in a weekend press release following the D-8 meeting.
Retno mentioned her meetings with European counterparts, including Norway’s Espen Barth Eide, Spain’s Jose Manuel Albares, and Ireland’s Micheal Martin. These countries recently announced their official recognition of Palestinian statehood, a move that elicited strong reactions from Israel. “In June, I will be engaging in discussions with several European countries with the same objective,” Retno added, although specifics regarding which countries she aims to persuade for similar recognition were not disclosed.
Indonesia has recognized Palestinian statehood since 1988, positioning itself among the early adopters of such recognition. Presently, 146 out of the 193 UN member states acknowledge the existence of a Palestinian state.
Additionally, the recent D-8 meeting issued a joint declaration, applauding the recent instances of recognition as efforts “for the sake of peace in the region.”
“[We] urge states that have not yet recognized the state of Palestine to do so, in line with the requirements of peace, international law, justice, and conscience,” the D-8 joint declaration emphasizes.
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