[ad_1]
Spain, Norway and Ireland formally recognized a Palestinian state on Tuesday (Wednesday morning AEST) in a coordinated effort by the three western European nations to put international pressure on Israel to moderate its devastating response to last year’s Hamas-led attack.
Tel Aviv denounced the diplomatic move as having no immediate impact on its bitter war in Gaza.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez told his nation in a televised address from Madrid that “this is a historic decision that has a single goal and that is to help Israelis and Palestinians achieve peace.”
Israel’s foreign minister, Israel Katz, quickly attacked Spain on X, saying the Sanchez government was “complicit in inciting genocide against Jews and war crimes.”
Ireland and Norway soon joined Spain in formalizing a decision they had jointly announced last week.
The Palestinian flag was raised in Dublin outside Leinster House, the seat of the Irish Parliament.
“This is an important moment and I think it sends a signal to the world that there are practical actions you can take as a country to keep the hope and the goal of a two-state solution alive at a time when others, unfortunately, are trying to bomb into oblivion,” Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris said before his cabinet met to formally sign off on the decision.
Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Bart Eide said in a statement that “for more than 30 years, Norway has been one of the strongest defenders of a Palestinian state. Today, when Norway officially recognizes Palestine as a state, it is a milestone in Norway-Palestine relations.
Although some 140 countries have recognized a Palestinian state – more than two-thirds of the UN – none of the major Western powers have.
Still, the addition of three European countries to the group represents a victory for Palestinian efforts in the world of public opinion and is likely to put pressure on European Union stalwarts France and Germany to rethink their position.
Previously, only seven members of the 27-member EU officially recognized a Palestinian state.
Five of them are former Eastern Bloc countries that declared their recognition in 1988, as well as Cyprus before joining the EU. Sweden’s recognition came in 2014.
Relations between the EU and Israel have soured with diplomatic admissions from two EU members and Madrid’s insistence on Monday that the EU must take action against Israel for continuing deadly attacks in the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
After Monday’s meeting of EU foreign ministers, Irish Foreign Minister Michelle Martin said that “for the first time in an EU meeting, in a real way, I’ve seen a significant discussion about sanctions” on Israel.
Harris, the Irish leader, insisted on Tuesday that the EU should consider economic sanctions on Israel, saying “Europe can do a hell of a lot more”.
Norway, which is not a member of the EU but often aligns its foreign policy with the bloc, handed diplomatic documents to the Palestinian government over the weekend ahead of its official recognition.
At the same time, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell backed the International Criminal Court, whose prosecutor is seeking an arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and others, including leaders of the Hamas militant group.
The official declaration and the resulting diplomatic row come seven months after an offensive launched by Israel following the October 7 Hamas-led attack in which militants stormed across the Gaza border into Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostages.
Israeli air and ground attacks have killed 36,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between fighters and civilians.
Last week’s joint announcement by Spain, Ireland and Norway sparked an angry reaction from Israeli officials, who summoned the countries’ ambassadors to Tel Aviv at the Foreign Ministry, where they were filmed showing them videos of the Hamas attack and kidnappings of 7 October.
Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob said on Monday that his government would decide on the recognition of a Palestinian state on Thursday and submit its decision to parliament for final approval.
Teenage pilot puts superpower fighter jet to shame
The United States and Britain, among others, support the idea of an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel, but say it must come as part of a negotiated settlement.
Netanyahu’s government maintains that the conflict can only be resolved through direct negotiations.
In his speech on Tuesday, Sanchez said recognizing a Palestinian state was “a decision we do not take against anyone, least of all against Israel, a friendly nation that we respect, that we value and with whom we want to have the best possible relationship.”
The Socialist leader spent months touring European and Middle Eastern countries, including stops in Oslo and Dublin, to drum up support for the recognition of a Palestinian state.
He called for a permanent ceasefire, an increase in humanitarian aid to Gaza and the release of hostages still being held by Hamas.
Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albarez will meet the Arab Contact Group in the Spanish capital on Wednesday, including Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Jordan.
Sanchez said his intention was to support the beleaguered Palestinian Authority, which has lost effective political control of Gaza to Hamas.
He laid out his vision for a state ruled by the Palestinian Authority, which should link the West Bank and Gaza through a corridor with the capital East Jerusalem.
The Western-backed Palestinian Authority governs parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, cooperates with Israel on security issues and supports the negotiated two-state solution.
Its forces were pushed out of Gaza by Hamas when the militants seized power there in 2007.
Palestinians have long sought an independent state in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, territories captured by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war.
The idea of a land corridor linking Gaza and the West Bank through Israel has been discussed in previous rounds of peace talks, but no serious or substantive peace talks have taken place in more than 15 years.
“We will not recognize changes to the 1967 border lines other than those agreed upon by the parties,” Sanchez added.
“Furthermore, this decision reflects our absolute rejection of Hamas, a terrorist organization that opposes the two-state solution,” Sanchez said.
“From the beginning, Spain strongly condemned the terrorist attacks of October 7. This clear condemnation is a clear expression of our unwavering commitment to the fight against terrorism.
“I would like to emphasize that from tomorrow we will focus all our efforts to implement the two-state solution and make it a reality.
The Irish government said it would appoint an ambassador and establish a full embassy in Ramallah in the West Bank.
Israel, which rejects the possibility of Palestinian statehood, recalled its ambassadors to Ireland, Norway and Spain after they announced the decision last week.
Norway’s Bart Eide added on Tuesday that “unfortunately, the Israeli government shows no signs of constructive engagement.”
“The recognition is a strong expression of support for moderate forces in both countries,” Norway’s top diplomat said.
[ad_2]
