Pitching for peace in West Asia, India on Tuesday urged that a future state of Palestine should coexist peacefully with Israel. However, visiting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said that a sovereign state of Palestine should be built according to the pre-1967 borders and include East Jerusalem as the capital.
“Since the days of our own freedom struggle, India has been unwavering in support of the Palestinian cause and we hope to see the realisation of a sovereign, independent, united and viable Palestine, coexisting peacefully with Israel. I have reaffirmed our position on this with President Abbas during our conversation today,” said Prime Minister Narendra Modi articulating India’s desire to find a permanent solution.
Dialogue the way
“The challenges in West Asia can be dealt with, sustained by political dialogue and peaceful means. India hopes for an early resumption of talks between the Palestinian and the Israeli sides, for finding a comprehensive resolution,” Mr. Modi said.
In his speech following delegation-level talks at Hyderabad House, the Palestinian President said the peace process received a boost following his meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump. However, he reiterated that a future Palestinian state should be based on the map of Israel and Palestine that existed before the Six-Day War of 1967 in which Israel absorbed East Jerusalem.
Competing Israeli and Palestinian claims over East Jerusalem, which is home to Jewish and Muslim holy sites, remain a major hurdle in the peace process.
“We reiterate our position that the future state of Palestine should be based upon the pre-1967 borders and must include the entire East Jerusalem as the capital of the state,” President Abbas said.
Mr. Abbas went on to thank India for contributing to capacity-building in the field of information technology in Palestinian territories.
In an exclusive interview with The Hindu , President Abbas on Monday had called for international backing for the peace efforts and asked for India’s involvement.
India key to talks
“In the case of India, we have always mentioned that we want India to be involved, besides Arab countries, EU, Russia and other members of BRICS,” Mr. Abbas had said, terming the Jewish settlements in the Palestinian territories a problematic issue.
The exchange on the West Asian peace process is significant as Mr. Modi is likely to travel to Israel in July which will be the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country since establishment of diplomatic ties in 1992.
The delegations also signed agreements on visa exemption on diplomatic and official passports, sports and youth affairs, agriculture, health and IT.
Published - May 16, 2017 10:35 pm IST
