Following Donald Trump's victory in the US presidential election, conditions are ripe for an end to the wars in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said between meetings in Jerusalem with outgoing Israeli Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, the Times of Israel reported.

“On the one hand, the very significant tactical advances made by Israel, and in particular the elimination of Yahya Sinwar, the organizer of this shameful massacre, contribute to the cessation of military operations. On the other hand, a new American president has been elected. He has never made a secret of his desire to end the endless wars in the Middle East. Therefore, it seems to me that in the coming weeks the conditions are ripe to move towards a diplomatic settlement of the ongoing conflicts,” Barro said.

According to the French foreign minister, he discussed with Katz and Dermer a diplomatic agreement that would lead to the creation of “a strong, sovereign Lebanese state with a monopoly on legitimate force that can live in security side by side with Israel.”

Barro also accused Israel of violating international law through “continued bombardment of the northern Gaza Strip targeting civilians and infrastructure, restrictions on access to humanitarian aid, extremist settler violence in the West Bank, rapid settlement growth, weakening of the Palestinian Authority, delegitimization of the United Nations and its main agency on the ground.” 

He emphasized that the Palestinian issue will not disappear no matter which American administration is in power.” Barro also had harsh words for Iran and praised the recent Israeli strike on IRI territory.

“The Iranian attack on October 1, which we helped repel, like the one in April, was unacceptable. Israel had the right to respond: it used force, but also restraint. Escalation must stop immediately. And Iran must stop its race for nuclear weapons, which threatens the fundamental interests of both Israel and France,” Israeli media quoted the French foreign minister as saying.