Swiss foreign minister rebuffs Israel’s UNRWA decision

Switzerland is planning to organise a conference in Geneva on the Geneva Conventions for the protection of the civilian population in the Palestinian territories. Keystone-SDA

Swiss foreign minister Ignazio Cassis hopes that Israel will not implement its parliamentary decision to ban the work of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) on Israeli territory.

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“The decision is not only incompatible with international law, but also threatens the urgently needed aid for the civilian population,” said Cassis on Tuesday at the UN Security Council in New York.

Speaking to media representatives in New York, Cassis said that Israel bears responsibility for humanitarian aid in the occupied territories. “If the work of the relief organisation is made impossible, then it is Israel’s responsibility to create an alternative solution. We have heard nothing about this so far,” said the Swiss Foreign Minister. Israel’s decision must not be implemented.

On behalf of the UN, Switzerland is planning to organise a conference in Geneva on the Geneva Conventions for the protection of the civilian population in the Palestinian territories. However, the meeting would not be a political conference, but a technical conference on how the signatories to the Geneva Conventions should ensure that these conventions are actually implemented and not just talked about, said Cassis.

None of the resolutions implemented

The Swiss government was demoralised by the lack of progress made by the UN Security Council on the Palestinian issue. None of the four resolutions adopted by the Security Council since Hamas’ acts of terrorism against Israel on October 7, 2023 have been implemented.

Even the appeals in the current UN Security Council meeting on Tuesday would probably not change the situation on the ground. “This is also the great frustration that currently prevails in the United Nations and in multilateralism,” said the Foreign Minister.

Ukraine conference in Canada

Cassis flew to Montreal on Tuesday, where he is attending a follow-up conference to the Bürgenstock Summit on Ukraine at the invitation of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Three thematic priorities were defined at Bürgenstock: nuclear security, food security and humanitarian security. These three topics were to be discussed in greater depth at separate conferences, Cassis recalled. The subject of humanitarian security is the focus of the meeting in Canada. The repatriation of children abducted by Russia from Ukraine, prisoner visits and other humanitarian elements will be discussed.

Cassis went on to say that the “Victory Plan” presented by Ukraine accompanied the peace efforts at Bürgenstock. “These two plans are interlinked, they form an overall vision,” said the foreign minister. However, what the path to peace in Ukraine would look like would also depend on the outcome of the US elections.

Translated from German by DeepL/jdp

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