Australia will recognise a Palestinian state, joining the leaders of France, Britain and Canada in signalling they would do so.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s remarks on Monday followed weeks of internal pressure from within his Cabinet and widespread calls across Australia to recognise a Palestinian state, and amid growing criticism from officials in his government over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Australia’s government has also criticised plans announced in recent days by Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu for a sweeping new military offensive in Gaza.
Albanese told reporters after a Cabinet meeting on Monday that Australia’s decision to recognise a Palestinian state will be formalised at the United Nations General Assembly in September. The acknowledgement was “predicated on commitments Australia has received from the Palestinian Authority,” Albanese said.
Those commitments included no role for Hamas in a Palestinian government, demilitarisation of Gaza and the holding of elections, he said.
“A two-state solution is humanity’s best hope to break the cycle of violence in the Middle East and to bring an end to the conflict, suffering and starvation in Gaza,” Albanese said.
Ahead of Albanese’s announcement, Netanyahu on Sunday criticised Australia and other European countries that have moved to recognise a Palestinian state.
“To have European countries and Australia march into that rabbit hole ... this canard is disappointing and I think it’s actually shameful,” the Israeli leader said.
Nearly 150 of the 193 members of the United Nations have already recognised Palestinian statehood, most of them decades ago. The United States and other Western powers have held off, saying Palestinian statehood should be part of a final agreement resolving the decades-old Middle East conflict.
Recognition announcements are largely symbolic and are rejected by Israel.
A two-state solution would see a state of Palestine created alongside Israel in most or all of the occupied West Bank, the war-ravaged Gaza Strip and annexed east Jerusalem, territories Israel seized in the 1967 Mideast war that the Palestinians want for their state.
Albanese dismissed suggestions Monday that the move was solely symbolic.
“This is a practical contribution towards building momentum,” he said. “This is not Australia acting alone.”
In neighbouring New Zealand, Foreign Minister Winston Peters said Monday that his government “will carefully weigh up its position” on recognising a Palestinian state before making a formal decision in September.
“New Zealand has been clear for some time that our recognition of a Palestinian state is a matter of when, not if,” Peters said in a statement.
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