New York - Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
Palestinian Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh said today, Tuesday, that working to oblige Israel to end its occupation of Palestine in accordance with international resolutions and references is the responsibility of the entire international community, and that establishing an independent Palestinian state is the most important condition for achieving sustainable development there.
In his speech at the Sustainable Development Goals Summit, at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, Shtayyeh stressed, “With the halfway point since the adoption of the Sustainable Development Agenda, we are still very far from achieving our goals by 2030, which requires us to work together to adopt practical measures to overcome... The multiple crises we face,” according to the Middle East News Agency
He added, "After half the period has passed since the implementation of the agenda, the Palestinian people are struggling to catch up with the global movement, in light of settler colonialism that controls the land, weakens the human being, controls the borders of the State of Palestine and its crossings, robs our people of its resources and capabilities, and practices everything that would undermine the chances of Development in Palestine.
Shtayyeh said, "The plan to transform our world adopted by the conference stressed that achieving sustainable development requires establishing peace and the sovereignty of states over their national wealth, natural resources and economic activities, and called for taking the necessary measures in accordance with international law in order to remove the obstacles that prevent the realization of the right of self-determination for peoples." It is suffering under the yoke of colonialism and foreign occupation, which continues to negatively affect its ability to achieve comprehensive development.
He continued: "Despite the obstacles resulting from our reality under the Israeli occupation of the land of our state of Palestine, our government has established the necessary institutional arrangements to reach the goals of the sustainable development agenda."
He added, "Palestine's development priorities, which we are working on in accordance with the 2024/2029 National Development Agenda, are to achieve comprehensive and sustainable economic growth by focusing on strengthening its production base, improving citizens' ability to withstand crises, improving the quality of basic public services and reform, and enhancing the effectiveness of public institutions."
Shtayyeh stressed that the Palestinian people will continue their struggle to achieve their independence in the coming years and achieve peace and sustainable development by the year 2030, but if Israel continues its occupation and its settlement and colonial measures towards land, people and money, and international aid declines, all of this will limit Palestine’s ability to fulfill its obligations to its citizens. and its international commitments.
In Brussels, a joint press release was issued by the European Union, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the League of Arab States, the Republic of Egypt and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, which stated:
Yesterday, Monday, the European Union, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the League of Arab States, in cooperation with the Arab Republic of Egypt and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, launched an effort to revitalize the peace process in the Middle East. In this regard, they held a ministerial meeting at the United Nations headquarters in New York, on the sidelines of the seventy-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly, in the presence of about fifty foreign ministers from around the world.
This effort seeks to produce a “peace support package” that would maximize peace gains for Palestinians and Israelis once a peace agreement is reached. It seeks to produce detailed programs and contributions, conditional on achieving a final status agreement, that will support peace and ensure that all peoples of the region reap its benefits. This effort seeks to ensure that the Day of Peace is a day of opportunity and promise, thus stimulating serious efforts to reach it.