Grant Shapps 'disappointed' in Benjamin Netanyahu's rejection of a two-state solution after the end of war in Gaza
21 January 2024, 10:20
Defence Secretary Grant Shapps has said he is "disappointed" Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu opposes a two-state solution.
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Speaking to LBC, Mr Shapps said he did not think there would be another option to move forward.
It comes after Mr Netanyahu said that his country must have security control over all land west of the river Jordan, including Gaza, to prevent an atrocity like the October 7 massacre taking place again.
He also vowed to press on with the war "until complete victory", including the total destruction of Hamas and the return of all surviving hostages.
Mr Shapps said: "I know he’s long held this position of saying there shouldn’t be a two-state solution and I find it disappointing, particularly at this point in time, when the world needs to know that there is a solution that both provides a sovereign state for Palestinians and also security guarantees for Israel.
"I don’t think there's another option other than a two-state solution – that’s what the United Kingdom is signed up for – but as ever we draw a distinction between who the leader is of a country, the politics of the day, and the country itself.
"We absolutely do believe that Israel has the right to self-defence but they have to be careful in the way that they prosecute that self-defence."
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Grant Shapps expresses 'disappointment' at Netanyahu's rejection of a two state solution
Mr Shapps also addressed dwindling numbers in the army, saying that the government's main concern was the "lethality" of Britain's Armed Forces.
An analysis showed that the army could number just 52,000 troops in 10 years based on current trends.
But Mr Shapps argued that the figures did not take into account other areas such as the navy, cyber and space.
"We’re really mainly concerned with the lethality of our Armed Forces," he said.
"In other words, how well can you defend yourself in a more uncertain world, do we have the equipment as well as the highly skilled individuals required? And the answer is yes."
He highlighted recent UK and US strikes against Houthi "thugs" in the Red Sea as proof, saying the group was causing "mayhem" and had received several warnings before action was taken.
"I don’t think military action is the full solution to this and we’ve never said it would be," the Defence Secretary said. "We never believed that it could be but there has to be a limit. We provided lots of warnings.”
It comes after it was announced that Royal Navy missiles that have been used to shoot down Houthi drones will be upgraded.
The Sea Viper Air Defence system will get more effective missiles featuring a new warhead and a software update that will enable it to defeat ballistic missile threats.
It will help protect the Navy's Carrier Strike group and allows tracking, targeting and destruction of a variety of air threats more than 70 miles away.
The £405 million upgrade, awarded to missile systems company MBDA UK, will help sustain 350 skilled jobs across the country and be complete by 2032.
The contracts will make Sea Viper "the most capable naval air defence system ever developed for the Royal Navy", the Government said as Houthi attacks on ships passing through the Red Sea continue.
It is hoped the upgrade will help Navy ships to better deal with more complex threats in future.
