Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa said Friday that Japan will "take a lead" in the global efforts to address the deepening humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip amid the escalating war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Japan will proactively communicate with related nations toward the realization of a "two-state solution" for establishing an independent Palestine state alongside Israel to resolve their longstanding conflict, Kamikawa said in an interview with Kyodo News.
She underscored that Japan can hold dialogue with Israel, Palestine and Middle Eastern countries. "We will aim to improve the humanitarian situation and help deescalation in the short term, and approach them to realize a two-state solution in the long term."
Earlier this week, Kamikawa and her counterparts from the Group of Seven industrialized nations called for "humanitarian pauses" to enable civilians in Gaza to flee and facilitate the delivery of aid supplies to the Palestinian enclave.
With Japan set to co-chair the Global Refugee Forum in Geneva in mid-December, Kamikawa said Tokyo will encourage other nations to step up support for refugees as more Palestinian civilians are expected to be forced to leave their homes.
Kamikawa, who became Japan's first female foreign minister in around two decades in September, also said it is important for women to assume "leadership positions" and engage in war prevention, reconstruction and peace-building in Gaza.
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