Mr. President,

The status quo in Palestine today is simply not sustainable. The Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories is a major source of instability both in and beyond the region.

Today, we are faced with the prospect of diminished two-state vision after the US’ decision to declare Jerusalem as Israel’s so-called capital and move its Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem on May 14.

Turkey, in its capacity as the President of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) convened the OIC in its extraordinary summit, held in Istanbul on December 13. The OIC, condemned the unilateral decision taken by the US in the strongest terms and rejected it as null and void, consistent with UNSC resolution 476 (80) which “censured in the strongest terms” a similar decision taken by the Israeli parliament back in 1980.

Furthermore, the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly rejected the US decision on 21 December. The vote showed once again that Palestine should enjoy international support for its recognition.

We believe that the humanitarian situation in Palestine, especially in the Gaza Strip, has worsened even further. The international community should not lose sight of the plight of the Palestinians suffering from the devastating effects from the Israeli restrictions in the Gaza Strip. Turkey will continue its humanitarian assistance to Palestine and its support for institutions and state-building efforts of Palestine with a particular focus on Gaza.

Finally, Mr. President, Turkey has the firm conviction that there is an urgent need to reactivate the peace process in order to avoid greater humanitarian risks.

I thank you.