Palestine Says 'Not Time Yet' in Response to Indonesia-Malaysia Plan to Send Peacekeepers

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Palestine responded to Indonesia and Malaysia's idea of sending a United Nations (UN) mandated peacekeeping force to Gaza, which is under attack by Israel. The Permanent Observer of Palestine to the UN, Riyad Mansour, said that now is not the right time to implement the idea as Palestine and the world are trying to end the conflict.

"We are at the point of ending the war and saving lives, and our energies are exhausted. Most of our energies are focused on ending the war," Mansour said in a press conference at the Foreign Ministry in Central Jakarta on Thursday, July 4.

Mansour said that when the Israeli offensive ends, there will be numerous other issues to resolve, including Indonesia's and Malaysia's readiness to provide security forces in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

"While we welcome all intentions of those who want to help, at the moment we are not at a stage to address the issue. After the end of the war, we will look at all options with an open mind to consider which ones can be applied and which ones are useful and which ones are not," he said.

The idea to send a peacekeeping force to Gaza was first raised by Defense Minister and President-elect Prabowo Subianto. Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue World Defense Forum in Singapore on June 2, Prabowo called for a cease-fire between Palestine and Israel and urged efforts to expedite the creation of a two-state solution.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim recently had a telephone conversation with Prabowo in which the two men exchanged views on current issues, including a joint international peacekeeping mission.

"Touching on the humanitarian situation in Palestine, I would like to inform you of Malaysia's willingness to cooperate, including in the aspect of deploying peacekeeping forces together with Indonesia, should it be mandated by the United Nations,” Anwar posted to his Instagram account on 1 Juli, along with a photo of him speaking on the phone with Prabowo.

According to the UN website, the role of peacekeepers is to provide security, political support and peace-building to help countries make an early transition from conflict to peace. The deployment of these forces involves the UN General Assembly, the UN Security Council, the UN Secretariat, troop and police contributors, and the host government.

Mansour emphasized that the current offensive in Gaza has not yet reached the stage where peacekeepers are needed.

"We are not there yet. We are not putting it aside, but we are not dwelling on the idea," he said, adding that sending troops now would be like putting the chariot before the horse.

A day after Prabowo's remarks at the Shangri-La Dialogue, Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi clarified his statement while explaining the mechanism for troop deployment.

"What Pak Prabowo means is that if a ceasefire can be achieved, the day after - if the UN decides to send its peacekeepers - Indonesia will be ready to send them," she said during a public lecture on "Indonesian Diplomacy for Palestine: All Eyes on Rafah" at Gadjah Mada University (UGM) in Yogyakarta on Monday, June 3.

As of April 30, 2024, Indonesia was the sixth largest contributor to UN peacekeeping forces. According to the latest UN peacekeeping data, Indonesia has so far contributed 2,715 personnel to UN peacekeeping missions.

Nabiila Azzahra

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