India has expressed the hope that Palestine's enhanced status at the UN will pave the way for resumption of serious and direct talks with Israel. Speaking at a General Assembly session yesterday India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Hardeep Singh Puri voiced concern that the continued impasse between the two parties over settlement activities threaten the two-state solution.

India was among the 138 nations that voted in favour of Palestine at a historic UN General Assembly vote that upgraded the status of the Palestinian Authority to non-member observer state from an entity.The US and Israel were among only nine nations in the 193-member UN body that voted against Palestine in Thursday's
vote.

Speaking at UN Security Council debate on 'Women and Peace and Security' Ambassador Hardeep Singh Puri said India calls for “zero tolerance” towards gender-based violence. He said, the promotion and protection of the human rights of women and girls in armed conflict continue to pose a pressing challenge. Mr. Puri said, India has consistently held the view that greater participation of women in areas of conflict resolution, peace negotiations, peacekeeping and post-conflict reconstruction is most essential for lasting peace and security.