New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday said a lasting peace between Israel and Palestine requires a two-state solution. He reaffirmed
India’s position during his address to the UN General Assembly.
“We strongly believe that a durable and lasting peace requires a two-state solution,” Jaishankar said.
He also referred to India’s support for civilians affected by the conflict. “In the meantime, India is contributing to humanitarian assistance and relief efforts for the Palestinian people,” he said.
India’s position on Palestine
New Delhi has long supported an independent Palestinian state. The Ministry of External Affairs has called for a “sovereign, independent and viable State of Palestine within secure and recognized borders, living side by side in peace with Israel”.
Last year, India backed Palestine’s membership of the United Nations. It also condemned the October 7, 2023 terror attacks on Israel and the loss of civilian lives during the subsequent Israel-Hamas conflict.
According to figures the MEA shared last year, India had supplied around 70 metric tonnes of humanitarian aid to Palestinians since the conflict began. This included 16.5 metric tonnes of medicines and medical supplies in October and November 2023. India also sent 65 metric tonnes of medicines to the UN Relief and Works Agency and the Palestine Ministry of Health in October and November 2024. The government said India had completed projects worth USD 26 million in Palestine over five years.
Call for concrete steps
India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish, called for practical progress towards a two-state settlement in July.
“Reaffirmation of support must take the form of actionable steps that pave the way for the two-state solution. Identification of such steps and their implementation modalities demand our collective attention and effort,” he said.
Jaishankar addresses wider conflicts
Jaishankar urged countries to move beyond prolonged wars. He said “endless war must now give way to an end to conflict”. He voiced concern about hostilities in the Gulf and called the situation in Ukraine “equally troubling”.
The minister also criticised Pakistan without naming it. “Yesterday, a serial practitioner of terrorism misrepresented facts before this Assembly,” he said, after Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif raised Kashmir in his Friday address. Jaishankar rejected attempts to “normalise terrorism, and claim immunity from its consequences.” He also called attacks on commercial ships and seafarers in international waterways “simply unacceptable”.
