Vatican Remains Committed to Two-State Solution in the Middle East

ROME (ANTARA) — Vatican Foreign Minister Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher said the Holy See would continue to firmly support the two-state solution in the Middle East.

Speaking to journalists from the Foreign Press Association in Rome on Tuesday (27 October), Gallagher, the Vatican Secretary for Relations with States and International Organisations, also answered questions on several international issues.

Gallagher said the Holy See would continue to advocate firmly for the establishment of two states, despite opposition among Israeli opposition figures during the election campaign.

He stressed that opposition from some Israeli politicians did not mean the international community had withdrawn its support for a two-state solution.

The proposal continued to receive considerable international backing, he said. However, Gallagher acknowledged that current circumstances made its implementation impossible.

Gallagher underlined that improving conditions in the occupied West Bank was essential to making meaningful progress towards a settlement, while issues relating to the Gaza Strip also needed to be addressed and resolved.

On the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Gallagher said the Vatican did not consider itself to have a role in ceasefire negotiations in Oleshky, in southern Ukraine, which is occupied by Russia.

Pope Leo XIV recently met Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Gallagher said the Vatican had an opportunity during those meetings to convey its views to both sides.

He noted that neither side wanted the Vatican to act directly as a mediator or facilitator; instead, they preferred it to take a supportive role.