ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has expressed the hope for achieving “meaningful outcomes” ahead of a high-level United Nations summit on Palestine scheduled to convene today, Monday, at New York. 

The event — officially titled the High-Level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution — will be co-chaired by Saudi Arabia and France from July 28-29. The conference arrives amid worsening humanitarian conditions in Gaza and a historic diplomatic shift: France’s decision to formally recognize Palestine as a state.

Israel’s war on Gaza has killed over 57,000 Palestinians since October 7, 2023. The conference takes place a day after Israel declared a “tactical pause” in fighting in parts of Gaza on Sunday and said it would allow the UN and aid agencies to open secure land routes to tackle a deepening hunger crisis.

Dar spoke to Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan to express concern over the “grave” humanitarian situation in Gaza which included starvation, forced displacement, and loss of innocent lives, the Pakistani foreign office said. 

“Expressing unwavering support for the Palestinian people and their just cause, they hoped for meaningful outcomes from the international conference on the implementation of the two-state solution, being held today at the UN,” the statement said. 

Dar also spoke to Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi on Sunday to discuss the situation in Gaza, the Pakistani foreign office said. 

The two diplomats also exchanged views about a “high-level visit” to Pakistan in the near future, the foreign office said without elaborating further. 

One of the most consequential developments ahead of the conference is French President Emmanuel Macron’s July 24 announcement that France will formally recognize Palestine, with the official declaration to be made at the UN General Assembly in September.

Analysts say France’s move could tip the balance internationally. Already, 147 of 193 UN member states — nearly 75 percent — recognize Palestine, including nearly all of Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East. France would be the first G7 country to join that group. The US, Canada, Australia, Germany, and the UK still do not, citing the need for direct negotiations with Israel.

The conference will convene foreign ministers and diplomats from dozens of countries and will build upon the work of eight working groups, each focusing on areas such as security, humanitarian aid, and post-war reconstruction.

A follow-up summit is planned in September at the UN General Assembly, to be co-chaired by President Macron and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.