Doha: Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, in a phone call today with his French counterpart Jean-Noel Barrot, stressed the importance of increasing European efforts and pressure to quickly reach a ceasefire in Gaza, praising what he described as France’s brave decision to recognize the State of Palestine.

According to Qatar News Agency, Abdelatty said that establishing an independent Palestinian state along the Jun. 4, 1967, borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, is the only path to security and stability in the region. He emphasized the need to rally support for more Western countries to recognize Palestine alongside France, in the context of the upcoming UN General Assembly session.

The Egyptian minister reiterated his country’s rejection of Israel’s attempts to consolidate its occupation of Palestinian land and of recent settlement expansion in the West Bank, calling it a clear violation of international law. He also rejected recent statements promoting the idea of Greater Israel and warned these positions fuel hostility, extremism, and instability.

The two ministers also discussed developments in the Iranian nuclear file, efforts to reduce tensions, the resumption of cooperation between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency, and renewed talks between Iran, the United States, and European countries to find a peaceful solution without military escalation, to avoid further instability in an already volatile region.