Singapore invites Palestinian PM to visit, pledges more support for Gaza rebuilding
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The invitation was conveyed by Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan (left) during his call on Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa on Nov 4.
ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI
Follow topic:
- Prime Minister Lawrence Wong's invitation to Palestinian PM Mohammad Mustafa to visit Singapore was conveyed by Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan during a visit to Gaza after the ceasefire.
- Singapore donated $652,000 to the World Food Programme for Gaza aid, showing commitment to alleviating the humanitarian crisis.
- Singapore supports a two-state solution and international efforts for post-war Palestine and Israel to achieve lasting peace.
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RAMALLAH – Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has invited Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa to make an official visit to Singapore.
The personal invitation was conveyed by Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan during his call on Dr Mustafa in Ramallah on Nov 4
Dr Balakrishnan is on a visit to the Palestinian Territories and Israel this week, following the recent implementation of the first phase of the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
“Prime Minister Mustafa expressed his appreciation for Singapore’s longstanding support for the PA and welcomed closer people-to-people ties,” said MFA.
Dr Balakrishnan also had separate meetings with PA Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Varsen Aghabekian Shahin, Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Estephan Salameh and former prime minister Mohammad Shtayyeh.
At the meetings, Dr Balakrishnan expressed Singapore’s commitment to support ongoing efforts to alleviate the humanitarian situation in Gaza following the implementation of the first phase of the ceasefire, said MFA.
“Singapore will continue to work with our regional partners to support international efforts for the ‘Day After’, including the proposed Arab Reconstruction Plan,” the ministry added.
The “Day After” refers to international efforts to plan for post-war Gaza, including how the territory will be governed, rebuilt and secured once a lasting ceasefire takes hold.
On Nov 4, Dr Balakrishnan and Dr Aghabekian jointly witnessed the handover of the Singapore Government’s US$500,000 (S$653,000) donation to the World Food Programme, a branch of the UN and one of the world’s largest humanitarian agencies, to provide humanitarian aid for Gaza.
Singapore and Singaporeans have contributed 10 tranches of aid worth over $24 million
At the handover ceremony, Dr Aghabekian said the donation comes at a good time, adding: “We need to show the people (of Gaza) that we are making a difference and we are diligent about it.
“I promise you that we will knock at your doors much less in the future if our potential is unleashed, and we are free from this occupation that has been sitting on our shoulders and burdening our hearts for a long time.”
On her meeting with Dr Balakrishnan earlier on Nov 4, Dr Aghabekian shared that he had asked her: “What do you need from us?”
“I was struck by your question... and that was a clear message to me that this is the essence of partnerships. This is the essence of how we want to move forward in terms of a relationship with another country,” she said.
MFA said that in his meetings with the PA officials, Dr Balakrishnan had reiterated Singapore’s support for a negotiated two-state solution, consistent with relevant UN Security Council resolutions, as the only viable pathway to a comprehensive, just and durable solution to the longstanding Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Dr Balakrishnan reiterated this point in a Facebook post on Nov 5. “As a friend to both sides, Singapore hopes that one day Palestine and Israel will live side by side in peace and security,” he said.
Dr Aghabekian said the two-state solution is what Palestinians want as well.
“In the final analysis, we want a viable Palestinian sovereign state that lives in peace and security with its neighbours, including Israel, and we would want the whole world to rally behind the two-state solution,” she said.
