India didnot sign a letter signed by 105 member nations in support of the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General António Guterres over the state of Israel recently banning him from entering the country.
The letter of condemnation was initiated by the South American nation Chile, which had initial support from Brazil, Colombia, South Africa, Uganda, Indonesia, Spain, Guyana and Mexico, according to the Chilean ministry of external affairs.
Israel’s foreign minister Israel Katz, on October 2, had declared António Guterres as persona non grata, barring him from entering “on Israeli soil”, accusing him of not condemning Iran’s missile attacks over Israel.
The letter signed by the member nations highlighted the role of the UN Secretary-General in building dialogue and understanding between the conflicting parties.
The letter implored Israel by saying such actions undermine the United Nation’s ability to carry out its mandate and provide humanitarian support.
The nations univocally said that the decision of Israel would further delay putting an end to all the hostilities and the establishment of the “two-state solution”, where the state of Palestine and Israel live side by side peacefully.
It is to be noted that though India remained absent from the letter in support of António Guterres, India had condemned the Israeli attacks on UN peacekeepers in Lebanon, by joining the 34 member nations who released a joint statement, after at least 5 United Nations Interim Force peacekeepers were killed.
Though the country wasn’t mentioned in the initial signatory list of this statement, the permanent mission of India to the United Nations later said on X that it fully aligns with the statement made by the 34 troop-contributing countries to the UN peacekeeping force.
The joint statement was joined by Colombia, Germany, Greece, Peru and Uruguay as well.
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