Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Thursday that Palestinians were ready to discuss peace with Israel once a new Israeli government is formed, and urged Cyprus to play a role in helping the talks produce positive results.
Abbas, who is on a working visit to Cyprus, spoke through an interpreter as he met President Nikos Christodoulides at the Presidential Palace in Nicosia. He said Israelis had voted on Tuesday and that Palestinians were awaiting the final results and the formation of a new government. “Once it is formed, we are willing to discuss the issue of peace with them,” he said.
Tuesday’s parliamentary election left no bloc with a majority. With 85.6 per cent of votes counted, Israeli media projected 53 of the Knesset’s 120 seats for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc, eight short of the 61 needed to form a government. The opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot was projected to win 48 seats and Arab parties 19. Ballots from soldiers and others voting away from their assigned polling stations were still being counted, and official results are due on 4 November.
Christodoulides said Cyprus was ready to play any role Palestine considered necessary to achieve their shared goals, describing the country as “part of the solution to the problems in the region”, not part of the problems.
The two leaders highlighted the humanitarian role Cyprus plays in the region. Christodoulides said most of Cyprus’s humanitarian aid goes to Palestine, that Palestine uses the CYCLOPS centre in Larnaca to train Palestinians, and that it recently took part in a seminar at the aerial firefighting centre Cyprus set up with the European Union in Paphos.
Abbas thanked Cyprus for its humanitarian and political support for the Palestinian people. He noted that Cyprus recognised Palestine in 1988, early and without being asked, and said ties between the two dated back much further.
He said Palestinians wanted security in the region, including with the Israelis, did not want military clashes or conflict, and sought a solution based on UN Security Council resolutions and international law. He added that Palestinians openly supported peaceful popular resistance as a form of protest when their rights are violated.
Abbas said Palestinians had for many years extended a hand to Israel in pursuit of peace, not only between Palestinians and Israelis but between Israel and its Arab neighbours. He also referred to the suffering of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which he described as the legitimate capital of a Palestinian state under international resolutions.
Christodoulides said the visit came at a very important time for the region. He said Cyprus’s position on resolving the Palestinian issue was clear and based on the agreed framework of UN resolutions, and that he hoped the two sides could work together to create security and stability in the region.
Christodoulides, who visited Palestine in 2023 and 2025, welcomed Abbas shortly before midday, and the two then held a private meeting.
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