JAKARTA: Indonesia welcomes the ceasefire in the Iran war and calls on all parties to respect sovereignty, territorial integrity and diplomacy, Yvonne Mewengkang, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson, said on Wednesday (April 8).
The United States and Iran have agreed to a two-week ceasefire, reaching a deal less than two hours before President Donald Trump's deadline for Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face the wiping out of "a whole civilisation".
The announcement by Trump late on Tuesday represented an abrupt turnaround from his extraordinary warning earlier, and came after mediation efforts by Pakistan's military chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, and its Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
China said on Wednesday it 'welcomes' Middle East ceasefire agreement. The Chinese foreign ministry said that it welcomed the Iran ceasefire arrangements, adding that China had made its own efforts towards realising lasting peace in the Middle East.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomed the ceasefire but urged all parties to work toward long-term peace in the Middle East.
"The Secretary-General welcomes the announcement of a two-week ceasefire by the United States and Iran," his spokesperson said in a statement.
He added that the UN chief "calls on all the parties to the current conflict in the Middle East to comply with their obligations under international law and to abide by the terms of the ceasefire in order to pave the way toward a lasting and comprehensive peace in the region."
Australia cautioned that the longer the war draws on "the more significant the impact on the global economy will be, and the greater the human cost".
"Australia wants to see the ceasefire upheld and a resolution to the conflict," Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's office said in a statement.
"We continue to call on all parties to uphold international humanitarian law and protect civilian life," it added. - The Jakarta Post/ANN
