Four European countries, led by Spain, have announced their agreement to work together towards recognizing an independent Palestinian state, considering it the only way to achieve lasting peace and stability in the region.
According to “The Times of Israel,” Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said on Friday, following a European Council meeting in Brussels, that Spain agreed with the leaders of Ireland, Malta, and Slovenia to take the first steps towards recognizing the state of Palestine. Sánchez expected the recognition to occur within the current legislative period, which started last year and will last for four years. He told reporters that the agreement was reached after meeting with his Irish, Maltese, and Slovenian counterparts on the sidelines of the council meeting yesterday.
A joint statement issued by Ireland after the meeting stated, “We agree that the only way to achieve lasting peace and stability in the region is to implement the two-state solution, where the Israeli and Palestinian states live side by side in peace and security.”
Furthermore, during a meeting in Spain in November, Arab countries and the European Union agreed that the two-state solution is the only resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Since 1988, 139 out of 193 United Nations member countries have recognized the Palestinian state.
The recent discussions around the recognition of a Palestinian state have been influenced by various geopolitical factors. The Jerusalem Post article highlighted the call for recognizing a Palestinian state as a step towards defeating extremism and creating a political alternative to Hamas. It was mentioned that the United States, United Kingdom, and European Union are being urged to form a “coalition of sanity” against extremist coalitions, with the belief that broad international recognition of a Palestinian state could push Israel towards peace and away from a binational catastrophe.
In a related development, All Israel News reported that the U.S. is considering the recognition of a Palestinian state after the current Gaza War. This consideration is part of a broader reevaluation of policies aimed at resolving the conflict and establishing a two-state solution. The discussions include potential actions like the bilateral recognition of a Palestinian state, allowing its admission as a full UN member state, and encouraging other nations to recognize Palestine. These steps are seen as part of a strategy to pressure Israel to present a viable vision for the region post-Hamas, and link the end of the Gaza War with a roadmap to a Palestinian state.
