Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
The Office of the European Foreign Policy Coordinator in Brussels published the speech given by Josep Borrell to the Manama Dialogue Forum 2023, in which he said: “I believe that Europeans and Arabs have a special responsibility to engage more in the search for a solution. However, what haunts me is that this slogan, which has been repeated over and over again, perhaps It was a way to wash our hands and keep them clean. Therefore, talking about a two-state solution without specifying the progressive and interim steps to reach it, which could one day lead to it, is not helpful. This is appropriate. This may be a wake-up call for the international community to take this seriously. That's why I was talking about some way out of this and certainly there are some red lines that we have to identify.
These red lines are: no reoccupation and no forced population displacement. Okay, but when you say “forced population displacement,” think about it. When you are bombed [and] starved, you will be [displaced]. Dangerous forced displacement of population. We mean not to force the population out of Gaza because Gaza is Palestinian land and should remain Palestinian land. Therefore, there is no separation of the Gaza territories from the West Bank and East Jerusalem. There are no three Palestinian areas. There is one Palestinian land. Therefore, there is no reduction in the area of Gaza. There is certainly no return to the status quo. No more terrorist attacks from Gaza and against Israel, meaning that Hamas cannot control Gaza anymore.
So who will control Gaza? I think only one person can do it. Palestinian Authority. I was in Ramallah and they told me that they were ready and willing to take on this responsibility. In fact, currently, schools, hospitals and public services in Gaza are run by the Palestinian Authority. They are paying for it. There are tens of thousands of Palestinian Authority employees serving the people of Gaza. But they will need international support. It's not about replacing them, it's about supporting them and helping them. This will require strong participation by Arab countries in the economic and political reconstruction of Gaza, not just the physical reconstruction of Gaza.
I was in Gaza in 2008, after the first bombing of the city, and since then we have reconstructed Gaza four times. It is not a question of rebuilding buildings. It is a matter of nation building. Arab countries must bear their political responsibilities. Especially those who have good relations with Israel and who enjoy the trust of the Palestinian Authority. I believe that Egypt and Jordan have a crucial role to play now, as do Saudi Arabia and all of you.
Finally, we in the European Union also need to get more involved in the search for a solution. We all need peace between Israelis and Palestinians, more than ever, because the polarization between North and South, and within our societies, has never been as worrying as it is today. Thousands of anti-Semitic acts in Western societies have been denounced. This must be fought.
Yes, Israel deserves security and the Palestinians deserve dignity. Yes, Israel deserves security, and the Palestinians in the West Bank deserve security too. So I said clearly in the kibbutz, I said clearly in Ramallah, everywhere; One horror does not justify another. Lasting peace and security cannot be achieved without a political process.
People bear no responsibility for crimes committed on the kibbutz. They don't have to pay for it. Peace has never seemed so far away. But perhaps this is an opportunity we cannot miss. As my friend Shimon Peres once told me: “War is not inevitable, peace is inevitable.” As a European, I can attest to you that this is true. Peace is possible. The only question is: How many innocent lives must we lose until we realize this? This is in our hands. Let's work for it.
Borrell is currently in the Middle East on a tour that has so far included Israel, the Palestinian territories, and Bahrain, and he will still visit Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar.