London, December 19 (RHC)-- In what many observers are calling a significant shift, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron and German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called for a “sustainable ceasefire” in a joint article in The Sunday Times. 

The two European diplomats said efforts should be focused on a two-state solution after the assault comes to an end. The U.K. and Germany had previously declined to call for a ceasefire and abstained from voting last week on the U.N. General Assembly’s ceasefire resolution.

This comes as U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin arrived in Israel earlier today, where he is expected to focus talks on transitioning to a “lower intensity” war. Austin traveled to Israel from Kuwait, where he paid his respects after the death of Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Sabah, the emir of Kuwait, who was buried Sunday.