NEW YORK: Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan called for the full and immediate implementation of the US-backed Gaza peace plan, while urging international action against Israeli settlement expansion, settler violence and annexation policies in the occupied West Bank.
He was speaking at a high-level meeting in New York titled “The Road Ahead: One Year after the New York Declaration and the Comprehensive 20-point Peace Plan for Gaza,” co-chaired by Saudi Arabia, France, the UK and Canada.
“Security must be built on mutual interests rather than at the expense of another party,” Prince Faisal said, stressing that the establishment of an independent Palestinian state and an end to the Israeli occupation were essential to regional security and stability.
Prince Faisal also stressed the need to preserve the historical and legal status quo in Jerusalem and reject violence, hatred and incitement by all sides, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
Last year, Saudi Arabia and France led a major international diplomatic push at the UN aimed at reviving the two-state solution.
Riyadh and Paris co-chaired the High-Level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution in July 2025, which produced the New York Declaration, an action-oriented roadmap toward Palestinian statehood and broader regional integration.
The UN General Assembly endorsed the declaration in September 2025 by 142 votes to 10, with 12 abstentions. Saudi Arabia and France reconvened the conference later that month, when 10 countries announced their recognition of the State of Palestine.
Prince Faisal on Wednesday welcomed steps taken by France, the UK, Canada and a growing number of other countries to recognize Palestine and urged states that had not yet done so to follow suit.
He also called for the full implementation of the Gaza peace plan to ultimately reunify Gaza and the West Bank under the Palestinian Authority.
The Gaza peace plan announced by US President Donald Trump last year envisages a phased Israeli withdrawal, Hamas disarmament and postwar reconstruction of the enclave, as well as transitional governance arrangements eventually allowing the Palestinian Authority to resume control.
Prince Faisal reaffirmed the Kingdom’s commitment to a “comprehensive, just and lasting peace” based on the Arab Peace Initiative, relevant UN resolutions and the New York Declaration.