Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry on June 18 received a phone call from his counterpart, alternate Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid where they discussed ways to revive the peace talks and to find a solution to the Palestinian cause after a long time of political stalemate.
FM Sameh Shoukry congratulated Yair Lapid for the formation of the new government and affirmed that Egypt would continue its efforts to support peace talks in the Middle East.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Ahmed Hafez said: “Shoukry affirmed that Egypt will continue to play its role in supporting all efforts to achieve lasting peace in the Middle East in accordance with international law and the relevant UN Security Council resolutions.”
Shoukry stressed the need to launch a comprehensive negotiating process to ensure the consolidation of the pillars of stability and peace in the region.
He also stressed the need to prevent an escalation between the Palestinians and the Israelis to push forward the reconstruction and development plans on the Palestinian territories.
Despite the fact that Israeli authorities on 10 June asked Egypt to stop the entry of goods to Gaza, mainly fuel, cement, and construction materials, Egypt allowed the entrance of the goods.
Egypt has allocated $500 million for the reconstruction of Gaza, to be implemented by Egyptian companies after the 11-day Israeli aggression on Gaza.
On 30 May, Shoukry met his counterpart, Gabil Ashkenazi in Cairo where they discussed solidifying a ceasefire between the Palestinian resistance and Israel and to revive the Palestinian-Israeli negotiation peace process.
The trip was the first formal visit of its kind by the Israeli Foreign Minister to Egypt in nearly 13 years. Ashkenazi came after 10 days from the Egyptian-brokered ceasefire that ended 11 days of the Israeli campaign on Palestinians.
Shoukry underscored in a statement the need “to explore ways out of the current stalemate in the peace track.”
He also reiterated Egypt’s fixed position in support of the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital based on the 1967 borders.
The Foreign Minister also referred to the two-state solution as “the only way to achieve just and lasting peace, as well as the desired regional security and stability”, emphasizing the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination.
This came after the successful Egypt-brokered ceasefire after 11-days of Israeli aggressions against Palestinians and the Gaza Strip. The aggression resulted in 248 Palestinian martyrs including 60 children and the destruction of residential buildings, hospitals, schools, and medical laboratories.
The Egyptian side has also stressed during the UN Security Council, conducted on May 16, the need to reach a peaceful solution to the Palestinian Cause based on returning to the 1967 borderline, where Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine.