Jokowi Asks Japan to Support Call for Gaza Ceasefire

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) on Saturday, December 16, 2023, asked Japan to support calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. Widodo met with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at Kishida’s office in Tokyo on Saturday. The two leaders discussed a range of topics, including the Palestine issue, according to a press release issued by the press, media, and information bureau of the Presidential Secretariat.

During the meeting, the President reiterated Indonesia's unwavering pursuit of a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, sustainable humanitarian aid, and a swift two-state peace process. He sought Japan's support for the endeavor.

Earlier, the United Nations Security Council failed to adopt a resolution demanding an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza due to a veto cast by the United States. The US deputy ambassador to the UN said that an immediate ceasefire in Gaza would “only plant the seeds for the next war.”

During the Ministerial High-Level Event on the human rights situation in Palestine, which was held in Geneva, Switzerland last week, Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi had said that leaders around the world must continue their efforts to fight for peace and push for a ceasefire.

She also urged the world to take a firm stance against the double standards demonstrated by Western countries on the Palestine-Israel issue.

According to Marsudi, some Western countries backing Israel are tending to call for unequivocal human rights protection, but, at the same time, they are looking away from the blatant human rights violations committed by Israel in the besieged Gaza Strip.

President Widodo had also pushed for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip during his meeting with US President Joe Biden at the White House in Washington last month.

However, Biden did not explicitly respond to Indonesia's ceasefire call.

The US has repeatedly said that it will continue to provide unwavering support for Israel’s operation in Gaza. Israel's aggression in the Gaza Strip has left at least 18,800 Palestinians dead, according to Gaza’s health authorities.

ANTARA

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