Gaza Contact Group to meet Nordic countries’ top diplomats in Oslo

ANKARA

The Contact Group established by prominent Islamic nations will continue their effort to promote an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and uninterrupted flow of humanitarian aid into the enclave in a meeting with the foreign ministers of some European and Nordic states in Oslo.

The foreign ministers of the Contact Group, including Türkiye’s top diplomat, Hakan Fidan, will meet their counterparts from Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Netherlands and Luxemburg on Dec. 15.

The Contact Group was established at a joint summit of the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Arab League in Saudi Arabia in November upon Türkiye’s demand after Israel’s indiscriminate attacks against the civilians in Gaza that killed more than 17,000 people, mostly women and children.

It consists of Türkiye, Palestine, Egypt, Indonesia, Qatar, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Jordan with the purpose of reaching a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and launching a fresh attempt for a lasting solution on the basis of a two-state solution.

The group has already had talks with five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and other prominent countries in the past weeks. They were also active at the U.N. for increasing the number of countries voting against the continued attacks by the Israeli security forces in Gaza.

Following the U.S. veto on a call for a ceasefire at the U.N. Security Council, the U.N. General Assembly convened an emergency special session upon the initiatives of the OIC and the Arab League on Dec. 12.

A resolution that calls for an urgent humanitarian ceasefire was adopted by the votes of 153 countries. Some 10 countries, including the U.S., voted against and 23 countries abstained. A similar vote in late October had observed 14 against and 44 abstained, meaning more countries are now vocal against the Israeli attacks on civilians.

According to diplomatic sources, the result of the vote at the U.N. General Assembly clearly indicates the firm stance of the international community on the Israeli offensive. They underlined that the continued efforts by Türkiye and the Contact Group had an obvious impact in getting this result.