Lars Løkke Visits Israel and Palestine

On Saturday, Minister for Foreign Affairs Lars Løkke Rasmussen visited Syria, and on Sunday his trip continued to Israel and Palestine, where he is set to meet with the Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Palestinian Prime Minister.

On Sunday, Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen will meet with Israel’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gideon Sa’ar. At the meeting, he will appeal for the ceasefire in Gaza to be upheld and for all parties to honor the peace agreement and maintain the momentum that has been created.

The minister will also continue to push for unrestricted humanitarian access to Gaza and urge Israel to allow the evacuation of patients from Gaza to the West Bank – including East Jerusalem – where they can receive treatment at safe and well-functioning hospitals.

Lars Løkke Rasmussen will also meet with the Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority, Mohammad Mustafa, in Ramallah. At this meeting, he will reiterate the need for the Authority to continue implementing necessary reforms.

“The ceasefire in Gaza is fragile, but it has still sparked hope that we can achieve a new beginning in the Middle East. This requires all parties to engage constructively in the implementation of the peace plan for Gaza. We are putting a lot of effort into supporting the chance for peace to be seized – through our EU presidency, our seat on the UN Security Council, and bilaterally with the parties – and I will use this visit to appeal for that again,” says Lars Løkke Rasmussen.

In connection with the peace agreement in October, Denmark decided to allocate DKK 100 million to scale up humanitarian efforts in Gaza and support early reconstruction. During the visit, the Foreign Minister will announce how the support will be distributed: DKK 40 million to the UN humanitarian country fund, DKK 20 million to the UN World Food Programme (WFP), DKK 10 million to the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS), and DKK 30 million to Danish civil society organizations.

During the visit, the Foreign Minister will also inspect the U.S.-led Coordination Center (CMCC) in Israel, which plays a key role in coordinating the implementation of Trump’s peace plan for Gaza, both on the civil and military fronts. He will also visit a border crossing into Gaza.

This is the third time this year that Lars Løkke Rasmussen visits Israel and Palestine.