The UK is considering recognizing a Palestinian state

2024-01-30 15:44:28, Kosova & Bota CNA

Great Britain is ready to formally recognize a Palestinian state, Foreign Secretary David Cameron hinted on Tuesday.

Cameron stressed that the Palestinians should be given a political horizon to promote the achievement of peace in the Middle East.

The UK has a responsibility to present what a Palestinian state would look like, according to him.

The Palestinian people must be shown "irreversible progress" towards a two-state solution, he added.

"Until this happens, we - together with the allies - will consider the recognition of a Palestinian state, including in the United Nations," he said of the Conservative Council for the Middle East.

"This could be one of the things that help make this process irreversible," he said.

He called on Israel to allow more international aid into the Gaza Strip and called the turning back of vital British aid and other aid at the border "ridiculous".

Cameron emphasized that the last 30 years have been a story of failure for Israel because it has failed to provide security for its citizens.

Only by accepting this failure, he added, will there be peace and progress.

Britain has long supported a two-state solution, where Israelis and Palestinians can live side by side in separate countries.

But Cameron suggested Britain could offer formal, diplomatic recognition to a Palestinian state, not as part of a final peace deal, but earlier, during talks.

At the same time, there must be a new Palestinian Authority with "good and technocratic leaders" who are able to lead Gaza, he underlined.

Regarding efforts to end Israel's war in Gaza, Cameron said a cessation of hostilities was needed now and that there were "hopeful signs" of the ongoing talks.

"We are now seeing the opening of a path where we can make real progress, not only in ending the conflict, but progress in finding a political solution, which could mean peace for years, not months." he said.

Israel's war in the Gaza Strip has devastated most of the tiny territory and killed more than 26,000 Palestinians, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

The war was sparked by a wave of attacks by Hamas fighters in Israel on October 7, which killed around 1,300 people and kidnapped more than 250 others, according to Israeli authorities./ REL