China Delegate: Ending the occupation is not an option, but a legal obligation of Israel
Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, addressed the emergency special session of the UN General Assembly on the question of Palestine at the UN headquarters in New York on September 17. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Xie Yi
Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, said in his speech at the emergency special session of the UN General Assembly on the question of Palestine on 17 August that China urges Israel to heed the strong call of the international community and immediately end its illegal occupation of Palestinian territories.
Fu Cong said that decades of occupation and oppression have caused untold suffering to the Palestinian people, leaving the long-cherished wish of independent statehood far away. Ending the occupation is not an option, but a legal obligation for Israel. The International Court of Justice issued an advisory opinion on 19 July, clearly finding that Israel's continued occupation of the Palestinian territories is contrary to international law and an obstacle to the realization of national self-determination by the Palestinian people, and that Israel has an obligation to immediately end its illegal occupation of the Palestinian territories. This advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice confirms the long-standing consensus of the international community and identifies the crux of the question of Palestine.
Fu Cong said that ending the occupation is not only to correct historical injustice, but also to lay the foundation for peace. Independent statehood is an inalienable national right of the Palestinian people, which cannot be questioned or denied. It was unacceptable that the prolonged illegal occupation had prevented Palestine from achieving national self-determination and had given Israel an exclusive veto over Palestine. History has amply demonstrated that occupation will not make Israel more secure, but will only breed more hatred and antagonism, sowing the seeds of instability in the entire Middle East. Only by completely ending the occupation and allowing Palestine to achieve independent statehood can Palestine and Israel live side by side and live peacefully side by side, can the Palestinian people and the Israel people live a peaceful and tranquil life together, and can long-term peace in the Middle East be realized.
Fu Cong pointed out that the implementation of the two-state solution is the only feasible way out of the Palestinian issue and is the broad consensus of the international community. The international community should make greater efforts to demand that Israel implement the relevant resolutions of the Security Council and the General Assembly, cease military operations in the Gaza Strip and cease illegal settlement activities in the West Bank of the Jordan River. China proposes to convene a larger, larger and more effective international peace conference to revitalize the political prospects of the two-state solution and formulate a timetable and roadmap for its implementation.
Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, addressed the emergency special session of the UN General Assembly on the question of Palestine at the UN headquarters in New York on September 17. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Xie Yi
Fu Cong said: Today is a historic moment, as the State of Palestine sits among the vast number of member states and has put forward a draft resolution of the General Assembly focusing on the implementation of the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice. China will vote in favour of the vote. China hopes that this UN General Assembly resolution will inject new impetus into ending the occupation, implementing the two-state solution and advancing the Middle East peace process.
Source: Xinhua Vision