Abu Dhabi: The UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has taken part in a virtual ministerial meeting to discuss plans to build a maritime corridor so that more humanitarian aid to be sent by sea to Gaza, which is much-needed.
The meeting was hosted by the Republic of Cyprus Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr. Constantinos Kombos, and included US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken; European Union Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič; UK Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs David Cameron; Mohammed bin Abdulaziz bin Saleh al-Khulaifi, Minister of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Qatar; and UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza Sigrid Kaag.
During the meeting, strategies for bolstering this humanitarian endeavor and expediting the maritime corridor’s operations to provide essential humanitarian aid to Gaza’s civilian population were deliberated.
To facilitate, coordinate, and verify the flow of aid reaching Gaza UN Security Council Resolution 2720, also addressed the mechanisms of cooperation between the participating nations and UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza, Sigrid Kaag.
According to the UAE’s Top Diplomat, to lessen the impact of the growing humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip on civilians, a multilateral, international cooperative approach must be adopted. Additionally, humanitarian corridors must be opened as soon as possible to allow the unhindered, sufficient, and sustainable movement of humanitarian aid.
The Minister pointed out the importance of building on the “Amalthea” initiative, which was recently announced by Cyprus and which defines a mechanism for safely shipping aid from Cyprus to Gaza via the sea.
Sheikh Al Nahyan added that the initiative is an essential part of promoting the joint efforts to launch this maritime corridor, stressing the UAE’s firm commitment to mobilizing international support for the maritime corridor initiative, as well as cooperating with its partners in the international community to enhance the humanitarian response provided to civilians in Gaza.’