By IANS
New York : Terming the US hosted Annapolis conference a “positive step” towards lasting peace in the Middle East, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has called for more peace efforts under the US supervision or within the UN system.
“Efforts should be made in accordance with the terms of international resolutions to achieve a lasting and comprehensive settlement of the Palestinian question, which is the centre of the Arab-Israeli struggle,” UAE’s permanent envoy to the UN Ahmed Al-Jarman has told the UN assembly, reported WAM news agency Sunday.
The UAE, he said, has participated in good faith in the Nov 27 peace conference in Annapolis as it aimed at taking concrete steps to break the impasse in the peace process and insisted that efforts should be made to ensure that the political momentum generated by it is sustained.
Al Jarman said this year’s deliberations have special importance due to the seriously deteriorating conditions of the Palestinian people inside and outside the occupied territories.
He condemned what he called Israel’s collective punitive measures against the Palestinians and said that Israel must take immediate measures to cease all settlement activities in the Palestinian territories.
Al Jarman demanded that Israel “enter into negotiations with Damascus to return the Golan Heights to Syria”.