Australia will recognize a Palestinian state at the United Nations in September, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Monday, joining a wave of Group of 20 nations that have moved to rebuke Israel over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
“A two-state 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 at a press conference. “The international community’s vision for a just and lasting peace in the Middle East always encompassed two states living side-by-side with internationally recognized borders.”
Australia joins Canada, Britain and France in moving to recognize a Palestinian state, a largely symbolic gesture, as international outrage builds over Israel’s war in Gaza, now approaching its two-year mark.
Like the recognitions planned by other Western countries, Australia’s comes with conditions: a commitment to demilitarization, democratic elections and assurances that Hamas will play no part in a Palestinian government.
Albanese said he spoke on Thursday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has largely resisted international pressure to shift the war from his own timeline.
“Most of the Jewish public is against the Palestinian state for the simple reason that they know it won’t bring peace. It’ll bring war. To have European countries and Australia march into that rabbit hole, just like that, fall right into it and buy this canard, it’s disappointing,” Netanyahu said at a Sunday press conference, prior to Australia’s announcement. “I think it’s actually shameful.”
The Israeli government late last week confirmed its military would seek to control Gaza City, one of the last slices of the besieged enclave not already under Israeli control. The Israeli prime minister has doubled down in response to international condemnation of the move, including Germany saying it would halt certain military exports to Israel.
New Zealand is also weighing recognizing Palestinian statehood, Foreign Minister Winston Peters said Monday.
The Palestinian Authority currently has observer status at the United Nations, allowing it to engage with the international community but without voting rights in the U.N.’s General Assembly. The Vatican holds similar status.
Admission of the Palestinian Authority as a member state with full voting rights would require the assent of the U.N. Security Council, where the United States holds veto power.
