Joint Declaration issued by the European Commission, the Republic of Cyprus, the United Arab Emirates, the USA and the United Kingdom on the adoption of the activation of the Sea Corridor for the Provision of Humanitarian Aid to Gazawhere the reasoning behind the decision and the next steps of the initiative are analyzed.

In her statements earlier from Cyprus, the President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen inspected the infrastructure for the humanitarian corridor and announced the launch of the “Amalthea” initiative, probably the day after tomorrow, Sunday.

Yes, Reuters notes that the aid organization World Central Kitchen (WCK) is currently collecting food in Larnaca for the population of Gaza with support from the United Arab Emirates.

What does the Joint Declaration say?

As stated in the announcement, “the humanitarian situation it is in Gaza dire with innocent Palestinian families and children desperate to meet basic needs. For this reason, today, the European Commission, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, the Republic of Cyprus, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States of America announce our intention to opening a sea lane to provide badly needed additional quantities humanitarian aid by sea”.

It is emphasized that “the leading action of Cyprus for the establishment of the Amalthea Initiative -which describes the mechanism for safely sending aid from Cyprus to Gaza by sea– was instrumental in making this collective effort to create a maritime corridor possible.”

In this context, as noted, “together, our nations intend to build on this model to provide additional significant assistance by sea, working in coordination with the UN Special Coordinator for Humanitarian Affairs and Gaza Reconstruction, Sigrid Kaag, who is mandated under UNSCR 2720 to facilitate, coordinate, monitor and confirm the flow of aid to Gaza. The dedicated efforts of the United Arab Emirates to actively work in support of the initiative will result in the first shipment of food by sea to the people of Gaza.”

It is also noted that “Cyprus will soon convene a meeting between senior officials, to discuss how it can accelerate this sea channel supports the population in need, complementing land and air passages, including from Egypt and Jordan.

The US declared an emergency operationwhich the US armed forces are leading to create a temporary dock in Gaza, in coordination with other humanitarian partners and other countries, to make it possible to deliver significant amounts of aid by sea. These efforts will be closely coordinated with the government of Israel.”

It is also stated that “Delivering humanitarian aid directly to Gaza by sea will be complex and our states will continue to assess and adapt their efforts to ensure that aid is delivered as efficiently as possible.”

“The sea corridorcan -and should- to be part of a sustainable effort to increase the transit of humanitarian aid to Gaza through all possible channels. We will continue to work with Israel to expand ground deliveries, insisting on facilitating more passages and opening additional crossing points to get more aid to more people,” it added.

“We confirm that the protection of civilian life is a basic principle of international humanitarian law which must be respected. And together we must do more to ensure that aid is delivered to the people who desperately need it.”the announcement concludes.