Madam President,
Switzerland has abstained on this draft resolution. Without opposing it, we believe that at present, this step is not conducive to easing the situation and finding a peaceful solution, given the great instability and the conflict on the ground. We believe that it would be better to proceed with the accession of Palestine to the United Nations as a full member at a time when such a step could fit in with the logic of an emerging peace.
However, this abstention in no way alters Switzerland's firm support for the two-state solution. We are convinced that only a negotiated solution in which two states, Palestine and Israel, living side by side in peace and security, can lead to lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians.
Madam President,
We have just discussed in detail the catastrophic situation in the Middle East. What is urgently needed is the immediate implementation of the resolutions of this Council and of the ceasefire. And we need – and this, without further delay, if we are to give people back the prospect of a peaceful future in which they can all live in dignity – the re-establishment of a political horizon for a negotiated solution to this conflict.
Switzerland stands ready to support efforts that can rebuild hope for peace through a solution with two democratic states, living side by side, in peace, within secure and recognized borders, based on the borders of 1967, including Gaza as an integral part of a Palestinian state.
I thank you.