Addressing a UN Security Council (UNSC) discussion held in NewYork on March 4-5 on the conflicts and humanitarian crisis in Gaza,Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN,showed deep concern about the prolonged conflict and increasingly serioushumanitarian crisis in the area.
He held that what the council has done in the past fivemonths is not enough to prevent violence and reduce tensions, and expressed his hope that the council will stay united and make more efforts to end fighting andpromote dialogue.
Emphasising the urgency of humanitarian relief activitiesand the key role of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees inthe Near East (UNRWA) in this issue, the Vietnamese representative proposed toprioritise ensuring enough water, food, medicine, and fuel for civilians to stayalive; and welcomed all international mediation efforts to promotepeace negotiations on the basis of the "two-state solution" andrelevant UN resolutions.
For his part, President of the UN General Assembly expresseddisappointment at the use of veto by a permanent member of the UNSC onthe draft resolution on an emergency humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Stripon February 20. He reiterated his call for all parties to respect internationallaw and exercise maximum restraint, adding that he hopes that the internationalcommunity will continue to make efforts to find a solution to end the crisis.
Representatives of many countries called on the UNSC to showresponsibility and stronger role in promoting the achievement of a sustainableceasefire, ensuring the unhindered provision of emergency humanitarian aid tothe people in Gaza./.