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Resolution 2202 (2018)
The Israeli-Palestinian peace process: the role of the Council of Europe
1. The Parliamentary
Assembly recalls its Resolution
1940 (2013) on the situation in the Middle East, where it “reiterates
its support for a two-State solution to the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict, based on the 1967 borders, which, in view of the new realities
on the ground, could be accompanied by limited land swap, as has recently
been accepted by the Arab countries”. It adds that Jerusalem could
well become the capital of both the State of Israel and the future
Palestinian State, as a result of direct negotiations between Israelis
and Palestinians.
2. The Assembly regrets the declaration of the President of the
United States of America, of 6 December 2017, saying that it was
“time to officially recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel”
and that preparations would begin “to move the American embassy
from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem”. At the same time, the Assembly notes
that, in the same declaration, the United States President stated
that his country was “not taking a position of any final status
issues”, and that he underlined “those questions are up to the parties
involved” and “the United States would support a two-State solution
if agreed to by both sides”.
3. The Assembly recalls the relevant United Nations Security
Council resolutions and the necessity for all parties involved to
abide by their legal obligations and responsibilities under international
law and to refrain from any unilateral measures that undermine the
prospects of the peace process, including the status of Jerusalem,
which should be decided by common agreement between the Israelis
and the Palestinians, taking into consideration the Hashemite historical
custodianship over Christian and Islamic holy sites in Jerusalem.
4. The international community as a whole expressed serious concerns
about the consequences of this declaration concerning Jerusalem
on the relationship between Israelis and Palestinians and the prospects
for a solution to their conflict.
5. The Parliamentary Assembly shares such concerns and regrets
that the peace process has been discontinued. It no longer seems
to be a priority for the United States, Europe and several Arab
States. It considers, however, that the present context could provide
an opportunity to relaunch the peace process. It is the responsibility
of the international community, including the Council of Europe,
to act decisively in order to create the proper conditions to attain
this goal.
6. The role of the United States as a serious broker in the peace
process was undoubtedly undermined by its president’s declaration
on Jerusalem. The country’s future role should be based on a renewed
attitude of neutrality in the peace process. In this context, Europe
should play a major role in the sponsorship and resumption of the
peace process.
7. The Assembly is aware of the fact that this is a complex issue
and that the Council of Europe continues to take an interest in
the progress of the peace process and could play a helpful role.
The Parliamentary Assembly is unique in that it has both an Israeli
observer delegation and a Palestinian partner for democracy delegation.
It also has contacts with other parliaments in the region, such
as those of Jordan, which also has partner for democracy status,
Egypt and Lebanon.
8. The Assembly regrets that the Palestinian reconciliation,
announced so many times, has not yet produced concrete results,
thus undermining the prospects of relaunching negotiations. It also
regrets the ongoing building of Israeli settlements in the occupied
territories, including East Jerusalem, thus undermining the feasibility
of the two-State solution.
9. The Assembly therefore refers to its Resolution 1940 (2013) and reiterates, in particular, its support for two equally
legitimate aspirations: Israel’s right to be recognised and live
in security, and the Palestinians’ right to have an independent,
viable and contiguous State, and:
9.1. calls
on the Israeli authorities to stop the building of new settlements
and the extension of old ones, and to cease all home demolitions,
forced evictions and confiscation of land in the occupied territories,
including in East Jerusalem.
9.2. calls on all Palestinian forces to conclude, without further
delay and in a transparent manner, the reconciliation, already announced
several times, between Fatah and Hamas, based on the principles
of the Quartet, thus also enhancing the credibility of the Palestinian
side in the negotiations with Israel, and cease support for those
imprisoned following convictions for terrorist acts and their relatives;
9.3. resolves to continue to promote dialogue and confidence
building between representatives of the Knesset and the Palestinian
National Council, in particular in the framework of the Sub-Committee
on the Middle East and the Arab World, and to make available to
both representative bodies its own experience in the field of human
rights, democracy and the rule of law. For this purpose it could
consider using the tripartite forum referred to in Resolutions 1420 (2005) on the prospects for peace in the Middle East and 1550 (2007) on the situation in the Middle East, allowing parliamentarians
from those two delegations and the Parliamentary Assembly to sit
together on an equal footing and engage in meaningful dialogue leading
to concrete proposals. The Assembly should therefore find ways of
actively supporting the relaunching of the peace process, including
through contacts with the directly concerned parties and other stakeholders
of the process, mainly in the areas of competence of the Council
of Europe.