Ireland, Norway and Spain announced Wednesday that they will recognize the State of Palestine, effective next Tuesday (May 28).
“Following months of consultation with like-minded countries across Europe and the Middle East, Ireland is making the announcement on the same day as Spain and Norway,” said a statement from the Department of the Taioseach of Ireland.
According to the United Nations, “The Question of Palestine” and whether it should be recognized as a state goes back decades. Tension in the Levant has increased since Hamas, a Palestinian militant organization, carried out a large scale, terrorist attack in Israel that killed approximately 1,200 people last October, resulting in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. As the war continues, so do concerns about Palestinian civilians in Gaza.
“Palestinian health authorities say Israel's ground and air campaign in Gaza has killed more than 35,000 people, mostly civilians, and driven most of the enclave's 2.3 million people from their homes,” Reuters said in a May 14 article.
Al Jazeera reported this week that 143 of the 193 UN members voted in favor of letting Palestine join the organization, “something only states can do.”
Additionally, most of the Middle East, Africa and Asia recognize Palestinian statehood and the Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica and Barbados joined this year, per the outlet. At the same time, the U.S., Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea and many Western European states do not, making the recent announcements from Western Europe stand out.
“Ireland today recognizes Palestine as a nation among nations with all the rights and responsibilities that entails,” said Taoiseach Simon Harris. “Ireland has for many decades recognized the State of Israel and its right to exist in peace and security. We had hoped to recognize Palestine as part of a two-state peace deal but instead we recognize Palestine to keep the hope of that two-state solution alive.”
Harris also said he hopes Israeli and Palestinian children will grow up as neighbors at peace in the future.
“The Norwegian Government has decided that Norway will recognize Palestine as a state. In the midst of a war, with tens of thousands killed and injured, we must keep alive the only alternative that offers a political solution for Israelis and Palestinians alike: Two states, living side by side, in peace and security,” Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre of Norway said.
In response to the three European countries’ impending recognition of Palestinian statehood, U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said: “Each country is entitled to make its own determinations. But the U.S. position on this is clear. President [Joe] Biden… has been on the record supporting a two-state solution. He has been equally emphatic on the record that that two-state solution should be brought about through direct negotiations through the parties, not through unilateral recognition.”
As for Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a Wednesday X post that “the intention of several European countries to recognize a Palestinian state is a reward for terrorism,” and said that a majority of Palestinians supported the Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
“This would be a terrorist state. It will try to repeat the massacre of October 7 again and again; we will not consent to this,” Netanyahu added. “Rewarding terrorism will not bring peace and neither will it stop us from defeating Hamas.”
The Washington Post reported Wednesday that Israel ordered the return of its ambassadors from Ireland, Norway and Spain after the announcement. A reporter also told Sullivan Wednesday that Israel is responding to the move to recognize Palestinian statehood by withholding funds from the Palestinian Authority.
“I think it’s wrong,” said Sullivan. “I think it’s wrong on a strategic basis because withholding funds destabilizes the West Bank. It undermines the search for security and prosperity for the Palestinian people, which is in Israel’s interests. And I think it’s wrong to withhold funds that provide basic goods and services to innocent people,” he added.
Earlier this week, Audacy also reported on the International Criminal Court’s move to seek arrest warrants for key figures in the war between Hamas and Israel, including Netanyahu and Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.
“The ICC prosecutor’s application for arrest warrants against Israeli leaders is outrageous,” said Biden in a statement. “And let me be clear: whatever this prosecutor might imply, there is no equivalence – none – between Israel and Hamas. We will always stand with Israel against threats to its security.”
Sullivan also referred reporters to the Israeli government about their position “with respect to the future of a Palestinian state or the Palestinian question,” Wednesday.
“I can just state to you what the U.S. position is. And it’s been longstanding,” he said. “President Biden believes that a two-state solution that guarantees Israel’s security and also a future of dignity and security for the Palestinian people is the best way to bring about long-term security and stability for everyone in the region: Israelis, Palestinians, and Arabs.”
Over the weekend, Sullivan was in Saudi Arabia to discuss this vision with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Yet, even as the U.S. works towards a peaceful solution, the national security advisor did address what a reporter called Israel’s “diplomatic isolation” amidst the war.
“I think it’s a fair question,” said Sullivan. “As – as a country that stands strong in defense of Israel in international forums like the United Nations, we certainly have seen a growing chorus of voices, including voices that had previously been in support of Israel, drift in another direction. That is of concern to us because we do not believe that that contributes to Israel’s long-term security or vitality.”
Still, Sullivan said it is important that Israel defeat Hamas in Gaza and that any government in Palestine not include Hamas. He also said he has not “heard the logic” for how the three European countries’ announcements will contribute to a ceasefire.
“What I can tell you is we believe the only way that you are going to achieve a two-state solution that delivers for both Israelis and Palestinians, is through direct negotiations between the parties,” he said. “That’s what we’ve been focused on. That’s what we’ve been driving towards.”