Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto said that he was prepared to send 20,000 soldiers to Gaza as a peacekeeping force on Tuesday during his address at the UN General Assembly.
"If and when the UN, the Security Council, and this General Assembly decide, Indonesia is ready to deploy 20,000 or even more of our sons and daughters to establish peace in Gaza or elsewhere. In Ukraine, Sudan, Libya — wherever peace needs to be established, wherever peace needs to be defended," Subianto said.
He also claimed Indonesia would recognize Israel the same day that the Jewish state recognizes a Palestinian state.
Subianto added that the world must respect Israel's right to live in security, and ended his speech with the Hebrew word "Shalom," which translates to "peace" in the context of his statements.
Indonesia is the world's largest Muslim country and has no diplomatic relations with Israel.
Commitment to two-state solution
"Indonesia once again reiterates its commitment to the two-state solution of the Palestine problem. Only this will lead to peace. We must guarantee statehood for Palestine," he emphasized during the speech. "And we will support all guarantees for the security of Israel."
Subianto then commended other nations that have recently recognized a Palestinian state, including France, the UK, Canada, and Australia. "The recognition of the state of Palestine is a step on the right side of history.
"We must recognize Palestine now. We must stop the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. Ending the war must be our utmost priority," the Indonesian leader added.
Maariv Online contributed to this report.