Opening the event, Egyptian President Abdul Fatah AlSissi presented what he said was a plan to address the crisis, which includes a ceasefire, the delivery of humanitarian aid and the start of effective negotiations between Palestinians and Israelis.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa also called for a ceasefire and warned of the danger that both parties would start receiving weapons from powers. “The conflict could spiral out of control,” he said. The meeting was also attended by Charles Michel, President of the European Council, the heads of government of Italy, Spain and Greece, and the chancellors of France, the United Kingdom, Turkey, the United Kingdom and Germany. Russia sent its deputy foreign minister.
However, in the US case, the option was to highlight only Deputy Ambassador Beth Jones, who represents the US in Cairo. Today the Americans have no full ambassador to Egypt and Jones is only a chargé d’affaires. In the diplomatic hierarchy, this is a sign that the American government does not see the meeting as a priority.
However, speeches around the table warned of the risk of collapse in the region. UN SecretaryGeneral Antonio Guterres warned that the region was “just one step away from the brink”. In his speech, he stressed that the humanitarian aid approved in Gaza this Saturday was far from ideal and called for an immediate ceasefire.