Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly said in a tweet that Canada participated in the joint international call alongside the United States, France, the European Union, Qatar, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Germany, and Italy, calling for a temporary halt to the war in Lebanon and Gaza.

The United States and the European Union, along with several Western and Arab countries, issued a joint call on Wednesday to establish a "temporary ceasefire" for 21 days in Lebanon, where the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah threatens to drag the region into a wide-ranging war.

U.S. President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron stated in a joint statement, "We have worked together in recent days on a joint call for a temporary ceasefire to give diplomacy a chance to succeed and to avoid further escalation across the borders."

Biden and Macron added, "The statement we negotiated is now supported by the United States, Australia, Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar."

On Both Sides of the Border

The countries that signed the joint statement said, "It is time to reach a diplomatic settlement that allows civilians on both sides of the border to return home safely."

They added that "diplomacy cannot succeed amidst the escalation of this conflict, and therefore we call for an immediate ceasefire for 21 days across the Lebanese-Israeli border to allow room for diplomacy to reach a resolution."

The joint call warned that "the situation between Lebanon and Israel since October 8, 2023, is untenable and poses an unacceptable risk of broader regional escalation, which is not in anyone's interest: neither in the interest of the people of Israel nor in the interest of the people of Lebanon."

The call urged "all parties, including the governments of Israel and Lebanon, to support an immediate temporary ceasefire in accordance with United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701 and the application of Security Council Resolution 2735 related to a ceasefire in Gaza."

The countries reaffirmed in their call their willingness "to support all diplomatic efforts aimed at reaching an agreement between Lebanon and Israel during this period, based on the efforts made over the past months to definitively end this crisis."

Commenting on this statement, a senior U.S. official said that the issuance of the joint call represents "an important breakthrough."

He added that Washington hopes this call will also "stimulate" efforts aimed at reaching a truce and securing the release of hostages held in Gaza.

He continued, "This is an important breakthrough regarding Lebanon, given all that has happened there."

For his part, another U.S. official stated that Washington expects Lebanon and Israel to decide "within hours" whether they accept this call.

He added, "We had this conversation with the parties and felt that this was the right moment" to issue it.

A 21-Day Ceasefire

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot disclosed during an emergency session of the UN Security Council on Wednesday night a joint proposal with the United States to establish a ceasefire for 21 days in Lebanon to prevent the current conflict between Israel and Hezbollah from escalating into a full-scale war.

This French-American initiative came after intensive discussions held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York and following a bilateral meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron.

The White House announced that Biden met with Macron in New York "to discuss efforts to achieve a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanese Hezbollah and to prevent a broader war."

The two presidents stated in a statement issued at the conclusion of their meeting, "We call for broad approval and immediate support from the governments of Israel and Lebanon" for the contents of the joint call.