Uruguay Explores Accepting Gaza Refugees, President to Champion Multilateralism at UN

Uruguay Considers Humanitarian Intake from Gaza

Montevideo, Uruguay – On September 10, 2025, Uruguay's Foreign Minister Mario Lubetkin announced that the country is 'seriously' and 'very carefully' analyzing the possibility of accepting Palestinian refugees from Gaza. Lubetkin highlighted the 'highly complicated' nature of the process, which necessitates authorization from Israel and the involvement of international humanitarian organizations such as the Red Cross. He emphasized that many families in Gaza are 'desperately' seeking to leave the region and have contacted Uruguayan embassies for assistance. The minister stressed that Uruguay, known as a 'welcoming, responsible, and humane country,' would not make promises it could not keep, indicating that any such plan would need to be 'financed, planned, and guaranteed'.

This is not the first time Uruguay has considered or implemented refugee programs. In 2014, the South American nation welcomed 120 Syrian refugees. More recently, in June 2025, Lubetkin mentioned a plan to facilitate the arrival of young Palestinians from the West Bank for training in sustainable agriculture, a program funded by Denmark and implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations.

President Orsi to Advocate for Multilateralism at UN General Assembly

Meanwhile, Uruguayan President Yamandú Orsi is scheduled to deliver a speech at the 80th United Nations General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, September 23, 2025. President Orsi is expected to reaffirm Uruguay's long-standing commitment to multilateralism and the peaceful resolution of global conflicts. His address will touch upon the 'worrying escalation' of conflicts in regions such as Gaza and Ukraine. Uruguay has a consistent tradition of cooperation with the United Nations since its inception in 1948, and Orsi is anticipated to underscore the value of multilateralism for a country with Uruguay's diplomatic history.

The current Permanent Representative of Uruguay to the United Nations in New York is Laura Dupuy Lasserre, who presented her credentials on August 1, 2025. Uruguay's engagement with the UN extends to various platforms, including the UN Office at Geneva, where Carlos Mata Prates serves as Permanent Representative.

Uruguay's Consistent Stance on the Gaza Conflict

Uruguay has consistently voiced deep concern over the escalating humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. The nation has called for an immediate halt to attacks and urged Israel to allow unimpeded access for humanitarian assistance through the United Nations. Uruguay supports a two-state solution based on the 1967 borders and rejects any actions that would alter the territorial or demographic reality of the occupied Palestinian territories. In August 2025, Uruguay's Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemned Israel's plan to occupy Gaza City, deeming it a 'serious breach of international law' and warning of its potential to deepen the humanitarian crisis.