President Yoweri Museveni has urged the parties involved in the Middle East crisis to retreat from military escalation and embrace diplomacy.
President Museveni, who is also the current Chairman of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), described external military intervention as historically ineffective and destabilising.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, Museveni said that force should only be used for “legitimate defence and not for aggression."
He noted that the belief in foreign intervention as a solution has consistently produced adverse consequences.
“All failed and, sometimes, the interventionists ended up disappearing,” he noted, referencing examples from European and global history.
Speaking to both Iran and Israel, Museveni described a series of missteps made by the key actors in the region.
He criticised Iranian Islamists for denying Israel’s historical legitimacy in the Middle East.
He urged them to acknowledge Israel’s Biblical and historical connections to the land.
“We told the Iranians that according to the Bible, Israel is part of that area,” he said. “It was, therefore, correct that the United Nations decided to partition Palestine among the two Peoples.”
Museveni also expressed disapproval of Israel’s refusal to implement a two-state solution, contending that the argument against Palestinian belonging was unfounded.
“You cannot say that they do not belong there... We rejected that logic,” he said.
He likened such exclusionary thinking to that of former Ugandan dictator Idi Amin.
In addition, the President noted the role of Western powers, particularly the United States through the CIA, in fuelling long-term instability by interfering in Iran’s democratic processes.
“It is them that created that huge resentment that produced these clerics,” he said.
Calling for restraint, Museveni appealed to all parties to return to “principled diplomacy” and heed voices of reason.
He urged Iranians and Islamists to recognise Israel, while imploring Israel to honour the two-state solution.
Museveni called for spiritual reflection, saying, “May we have the willingness to humble ourselves and pray and ask for God’s wisdom, that we may do what is right in His eyes.”
