Politics
UK to host ‘peace conference’ for Israeli and Palestinian civil society leaders
The foreign Secretary said the UK would draw on the reconciliation process in Northern Ireland in facilitating talks
December 10, 2025 17:04
The foreign Secretary said the UK would draw on the reconciliation process in Northern Ireland in facilitating talks
December 10, 2025 17:04The UK is to host what the Government is billing as a “key peacebuilding conference” in an effort to improve relations between Israeli and Palestinian leaders, the Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office (FCDO) has announced.
Israeli and Palestinian civil society leaders will convene with UK peacebuilding experts in London for the event, due to take place on March 12.
Discussions will centre around the establishment of an “International Peace Fund for Israel and Palestine”, as pledged by Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Such a fund would support peacebuilding activities which bring Israelis and Palestinians together to “reduce violence, build trust, and create the conditions for a lasting and just peace,” the FCDO said,
Attendees will draw upon previous experience of UK involvement in foreign peace efforts, including in Northern Ireland and the Western Balkans. they added.
IN a statement the FCDO statement said that “civil society organisations in Israel and Palestine have a vital role to play in reinforcing the forward momentum of recent months”.
It continued: “Over the past year, the UK has been working with partners on the ground and internationally to ensure that civil society groups are ready to take the lead in advancing long-term stability, and driving progress towards a two-state solution”..
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, who will host the event, said: “This conference will be a crucial step in that journey [towards implementing the US-led 20-point peace plan for the region], bringing together representatives of Palestinian and Israeli civil society to build common ground between their communities, challenge entrenched divisions, and work towards a future where both states can live side-by-side in peace and security.”
“With the UK’s experience of the reconciliation process in Northern Ireland and our ongoing support for peacebuilding in Western Balkans, we are well placed to host and facilitate these talks, and the new International Peace Fund we are helping to create will provide the practical support to drive this work forward.”
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