At a ministerial-level meeting held at the UN Security Council, countries called for a further extension of the period of hostilities in the Gaza Strip by Israel and the Islamic group Hamas.
The UN Security Council Ministerial Meeting on the situation in the Middle East was chaired by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on May 29, and Japan's Special Envoy for Middle East Peace Representative Uemura attended.
At the outset, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said, "We need a genuine humanitarian ceasefire, and we must aim for a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine based on UN resolutions. If we fail to do so, the region and the world will fall into an endless cycle of death and destruction."
After this, while welcoming the mediation of Egypt, Qatar, and other countries concerned regarding the cessation of hostilities in the Gaza Strip, there were a number of opinions calling for a further extension of the cessation period.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who chaired the meeting, reiterated the need for an immediate ceasefire, saying, "We strongly hope that these few days will be the beginning of diplomacy towards a lasting ceasefire, and we appeal to the international community to make a comprehensive and lasting ceasefire a top priority."
On the other hand, Israel's ambassador to the UN Eldan said, "The only way to improve the situation is to support Israel in its efforts to eradicate Hamas's terrorist capabilities," and reiterated the position that military operations against Hamas will resume once the period of the cessation of hostilities ends.
"Japan wants to help create the future in the Middle East"
Speaking to reporters after the UN Security Council meeting, Japan government representative Uemura said, "At the meeting, we expressed our hope that the current cessation of hostilities should be seen as an important step for the future and that we hope that the current situation will continue for a long time. He acknowledged that all the countries that participated in the meeting called for an extension of the cessation period.
At the venue, he exchanged views with foreign ministers of Middle Eastern countries and senior officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of each country, and said, "I conveyed to each country that Japan wants to participate in any international efforts after overcoming the humanitarian crisis and help create a future for the Middle East."