October 25, 2024
JAKARTA – Foreign Minister Sugiono reiterated Indonesia’s commitment to push for an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East during a bilateral meeting on Wednesday with Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) secretary-general Hussein Al Sheikh, on the sidelines of the 16th BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russia.
“I will make sure that the issue of Palestine remains at the forefront of Indonesian diplomacy, and we will continue to stand firm with the Palestinian people,” the newly appointed minister said in a statement released by the Foreign Ministry on Thursday.
He also reaffirmed Indonesia’s commitment to providing humanitarian aid to Palestinians, either directly or through international organizations, such as the United Nations’ relief agency UNRWA and the International Labour Organization (ILO).
Arriving in Kazan on Wednesday to attend the summit, which gathers leaders from the BRICS group of emerging economies, Sugiono stressed that a collective effort was crucial to foster stability and peace in the Middle East amid Israel’s widening offensive.
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“In the summit, Indonesia will voice a message of peace and call for unity among developing countries and those of the Global South to increase solidarity and play an important role in creating a more inclusive, just and equal world order,” he had said ahead of the summit.
This is Sugiono’s first international appearance after was installed on Monday as foreign minister in President Prabowo Subianto’s Red and White Cabinet.
On Sunday, Prabowo made a bold statement in his inauguration speech that the country would continue to back an independent Palestine, free from Israel’s illegal annexation.
“We have a principle that we have to be in solidarity with and defend oppressed peoples around the world. Therefore, we support the Palestinian cause of freedom,” the President said.