German minister optimistic about Gaza ceasefire after call with Rubio

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul believes the chances are improving for a ceasefire in Gaza, following a phone call with his US counterpart Marco Rubio.

Wadephul, speaking in Vienna on Thursday on the sidelines of talks with his Austrian and Israeli counterparts, said he was optimistic that a "good result" could be reached.

He called for the necessary pressure to now be put on Palestinian extremist organization Hamas. "Hamas must not have a future," the minister said.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, who previously held talks with Wadephul and Austrian top diplomat Beate Meinl-Reisinger, agreed that a ceasefire was within reach.

Meinl-Reisinger described the current moment as a "historic opportunity" that was now emerging to stabilize the entire region, stressing that after 642 days of war in Gaza, an agreement was long overdue.

The German and Austrian ministers again urged Israel to enable a rapid improvement in the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.

The meeting in Vienna was intended as the first of a series in the same format, with Wadephul inviting his counterparts for talks in Berlin.

Wadephul and Meinl-Reisinger reiterated that suspending the EU-Israel Association Agreement over human rights violations in Gaza, as is currently being discussed at EU level, was out of the question.

An EU internal review into whether Israel still adheres to the agreement, which stipulates that relations between the parties are based on respect for human rights, caused friction between the bloc's member states and Israel.

The review found that Israel's conduct in the Gaza Strip - particularly its restrictions on humanitarian aid - does not align with those principles.