Following the Foreign Secretary's statement on the "Free Gaza" flotilla, Geoffrey Clifton-Brown calls on him to press for the ending of the blockade of Gaza as a precursor to a full middle east peace settlement.

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown (The Cotswolds) (Con): My right hon. Friend has made it quite clear this afternoon that he thinks that the blockade is counter-productive because of the suffering that it causes to the people of Gaza. Will he therefore press the international community to lift the blockade as a precursor to a full middle east peace settlement?

Mr Hague: It is a very important part of any middle east peace settlement, and my hon. Friend's question reminds us that it is very important to continue the work on a middle east peace settlement overall. The proximity talks have been taking place and we want them to become much more serious. European nations now have to look to how we can buttress the efforts of the United States to push those talks forward. It is one of the things that I want to discuss around European capitals next week. Ending this blockade of Gaza is an integral part of finding any such durable solution.

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