France has recognised a Palestinian state, joining several Western countries in doing so, ahead of the annual United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) meeting in New York.
“We have gathered here because the time has come,” President Emmanuel Macron said at a UN summit convened to revive the long-delayed two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict.
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“It falls on us, this responsibility, to do everything in our power to preserve the possibility of a two-state solution.
“Today, I declare that France recognises the state of Palestine,” he said. Envoys from Israel and the United States were missing from the event.
Recognition of Palestinian statehood by Australia, Canada, Portugal and the United Kingdom on Sunday piled pressure on Israel as it intensifies its genocidal war on Gaza, which has killed more than 65,300 Palestinians and turned the enclave to ruins. Spain, Norway and Ireland recognised the Palestinian statehood last year. Madrid has imposed sanctions on Israel for its brutal war on Gaza.
The Palestinian Authority (PA) hailed the French move as a “historic and courageous decision”.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates welcomes the recognition of the State of Palestine by the friendly Republic of France, considering it a historic and courageous decision that is consistent with international law and United Nations resolutions and supports ongoing efforts to achieve peace and implement the two-state solution,” the PA’s Foreign Ministry in Ramallah said in a statement.
‘A right, not a reward’
Speaking at the conference, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reiterated his support for the two-state solution, framing it as the only viable path towards peace after years of failed negotiations and ongoing violations on the ground.
Rejecting the US and Israeli criticism that the recognition is a reward for Hamas, Guterres said, “is a right, not a reward”.
Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, thanked Macron and the UN chief for their efforts towards a two-state solution, which he said is “the only way to achieve just and lasting peace”.
He said the conference, co-chaired by Saudi Arabia and France, comes at a time when “the Israeli occupation authorities continue their aggression and their brutal crimes” against Palestinians in Gaza, and Israel continues its “violations in the West Bank, and its repeated attacks on Arab and Muslim countries, with the most recent attack on Qatar”.
“These actions underline Israel’s insistence on continuing aggressive practices that threaten regional and international peace and stability and undermine efforts of peace in the region,” he said.
The US, Israel’s closest ally, has criticised Western governments’ recent recognition of Palestine, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier saying that the move will “embolden [Hamas]” and make it harder to end the war.
‘A momentum building up’
Sultan Barakat, a professor at Hamad Bin Khalifa University in Qatar, said that Palestinian recognition goes beyond symbolism and represents “some real, practical support to the cause of Palestine”.
“This is another crack added to the issue of the Israel-Palestine conflict, and we should just keep going.”
Palestine is expected to top the agenda of the UNGA, to be attended by more than 140 world leaders. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, however, will not be able to attend, as the US has denied him a visa.
In his address to Monday’s conference via a videolink, Abbas called for an immediate ceasefire and the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza, where a famine has been declared by an international monitor and more than 400 people have starved to death since Israel imposed its punishing blockade in September 2023.
Reporting from UN headquarters in New York, Al Jazeera’s Hashem Ahelbarra said that there is a momentum building for UN leaders to discuss a two-state solution.
“The only problem they face is that establishing a viable Palestinian state is something that requires a nod from the US administration, which does not seem to be willing to go down that path,” he said.
“For many European leaders, this is not a symbolic gesture, but an attempt to try and push for a new political order to prevail in the near future. They say they have leverage that they are ultimately going to use to put an end to the war in Gaza,” he added.
On Monday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that US President Donald Trump believes the recent recognition of the state of Palestine by several Western countries “is a reward to Hamas”.
“The president has been very clear; he disagrees with this decision. He spoke about that in the UK… He feels this does not do anything to release the hostages, which is the primary goal right now in Gaza; does nothing to end this conflict and bring this war to a close… he believes it is a reward to Hamas,” she said, highlighting that more than 40 Israeli captives are still being held in Gaza.