The UK and France, in coordination with the United States, are working to finalise a UN Security Council resolution in the coming days that would lay the foundation for a future international force in Gaza, France has said.
With a shaky US-mediated ceasefire between Israel and Hamas holding, planning is under way for an international force to stabilise security in the Palestinian enclave, two senior US advisers said on Wednesday.
French Foreign Ministry spokesperson Pascal Confavreux said such a force needed a UN mandate to provide a strong foundation in international law and ease the process of getting potential contributions from countries.
“France is working closely with its partners on the establishment of such an international mission, which must be formalised through the adoption of a UN Security Council resolution,” he said.
“Discussions, notably with the Americans and British, are ongoing to propose this resolution in the coming days.”
Donald Trump’s administration is speaking with many countries interested in contributing to the force, a White House official said yesterday.
“We are also in conversations about a potential UN Security Council resolution to support this effort,” the White House official said.
Paris hosted talks with other European and Arab powers on 10 October to develop plans for Gaza’s post-war transition, including how an international force could take shape.
Diplomats said the stabilisation force would not be a formal United Nations peacekeeping force paid for by the world body.
Instead, a Security Council resolution could mirror action taken by the 15-member body to back the deployment of an international force to combat armed gangs in Haiti.
That resolution spells out and authorises the mission and states contributing to the force to “take all necessary measures” – code for the use of force – to carry out the mandate.
“The stabilisation force will take some time,” UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer told parliament this week.
“The terms of reference are still being drawn up. There is a United Nations Security Council resolution on the establishment of the force, or I hope there will be, but the wider terms of reference are not yet agreed.”
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