On July 30, 2020, His Eminence Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State, met with the Ambassadors of the United States of America and of the State of Israel, in order to express the concern of the Holy See regarding possible unilateral actions that may further jeopardize the search for peace between Israelis and Palestinians, as well as the delicate situation in the Middle East. This is according to a July 1, 2020, Vatican press release.
As already declared on November 20, 2019, and on May 20, 2020, the Holy See reiterates that the State of Israel and the State of Palestine have the right to exist and to live in peace and security, within internationally recognized borders. It thus appeals to the Parties to do everything possible to reopen the process of direct negotiation, on the basis of the relevant Resolutions of the United Nations, and aided by measures that can reestablish reciprocal confidence, so that they may have «the courage to say yes to encounter and no to conflict: yes to dialogue and no to violence; yes to negotiations and no hostilities; yes to respect for agreements and no to acts of provocation; yes to sincerity and no to duplicity» (Pope Francis, Invocation for peace in the Holy Land, Vatican Gardens, June 8, 2014).
