Australia, Canada, UK, Portugal recognize Palestinian state in effort to 'save two-state solution'

Although the three countries had stated their intentions earlier in the summer, the timing – a day ahead of the UNGA conference – came as a surprise. It also means that two G7 countries have recognized a state of Palestine.

The decisions were “an absurd reward for terrorism,” the Prime Minister’s Office said, adding that the international community “will hear from us on this matter in the coming days.”

He said his decision came amid “growing horror in the Middle East,” and that he believes recognizing a Palestinian state will “keep alive the possibility of peace and of a two-state solution.

Simultaneously, Canada and Australia made the same announcements.

“Today’s act of recognition reflects Australia’s longstanding commitment to a two-state solution, which has always been the only path to enduring peace and security for the Israeli and the Palestinian peoples,” they said.

The Australian statement mentioned Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s alleged commitment to recognize Israel’s right to exist, as well as his promise to hold democratic elections and reform his governance.

“The terrorist organization Hamas must have no role in Palestine,” Wong and Albanese said.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada also recognizes the state of Palestine and “offers our partnership in building the promise of a peaceful future for both the state of Palestine and the State of Israel.

“While Canada is under no illusions that this recognition is a panacea, this recognition is firmly aligned with the principles of self-determination and fundamental human rights reflected in the United Nations Charter and the consistent policy of Canada for generations,” he said.

Carney condemned the pervasive threat of Hamas terrorism to Israel and its people, “culminating in the heinous terrorist attack of October 7, 2023.”

He also condemned the building of settlements across the West Bank and east Jerusalem and “the Israeli government’s contribution to the humanitarian disaster in Gaza.”

“Recognizing the state of Palestine, led by the Palestinian Authority, empowers those who seek peaceful coexistence and the end of Hamas and in no way legitimizes terrorism, nor is it any reward for it,” Carney said.

Before his announcement, families of Israeli hostages in Gaza wrote to Starmer, expressing their disappointment in his decision and entreated him not to take that step before all 48 remaining hostages are returned.

“Your regrettable announcement of the UK’s intention to recognize a Palestinian state at the United Nations General Assembly has dramatically complicated efforts to bring home our loved ones,” they wrote.

“As prime minister of the UK, you have a valuable role to play in bringing the hostages home, including three remaining British-linked hostages, but your current path is the wrong one,” the letter said.

Israel remains vehemently opposed to recognition of a Palestinian state, especially during the ongoing Israel-Hamas War.

When Starmer announced his intentions in July, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: “Starmer rewards Hamas’s monstrous terrorism & punishes its victims. A jihadist state on Israel’s border TODAY will threaten Britain TOMORROW. Appeasement towards jihadist terrorists always fails. It will fail you, too. It will not happen.”

The Democrats chairman Yair Golan on Sunday said unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state was “destructive to Israel’s security,” but he blamed it on “serious diplomatic failures by Netanyahu and [Finance Minister Bezalel] Smotrich.”

Golan said it was a “direct product of Netanyahu’s diplomatic abandonment: a refusal to end the war and the dangerous choice of occupation and annexation.”

In response, Religious Zionist Party MK Zvi Sukkot called for full sovereignty in Judea and Samaria.

The move did not receive overwhelming support in the UK. Almost nine in ten Britons do not back Starmer recognizing a Palestinian state without conditions, according to a poll carried out by JL Partners and published by The Telegraph on Saturday.

Thirteen percent of Britons support Palestine being recognized without any conditions, 51% oppose recognition while Hamas still controls Gaza and has not released any hostages, and 40% believe a condition for statehood should be Hamas agreeing to a ceasefire and releasing hostages, the poll indicated.

The move is also strongly opposed by US President Donald Trump, who made a state visit to the UK last week.

During his meeting with his British counterpart, Trump said he did not agree with the plan to recognize a Palestinian state. Following the meeting, reports circulated in British media that the UK was intending to punish Hamas with new sanctions as a way of appeasing Trump.

The Board of Deputies of British Jews on Sunday said there would be “deep dismay” at the announcement across the Jewish community.

“As we feared and warned, the way the UK has chosen to recognize a Palestinian state has done nothing to advance a ceasefire, free the hostages, stop the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza, or advance long-term peace,” it said.

Canada’s Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) said: “Recognizing statehood of a territory run by terrorists and where hostages remain in captivity is a reward for the October 7 terror attacks.”

The move emboldens Hamas, undermines peace efforts, prolongs the suffering of Palestinians under Hamas rule, and fuels global incitement against the Jewish people, it said.

Recognition of a Palestinian state was linked to a surge in anti-Jewish hate crimes in Canada, CIJA said.

Husam Zomlot, head of the Palestinian Mission to the UK, said the decision was historic and long overdue.

“It marks an irreversible step toward justice, peace, and the correction of historic wrongs, including Britain’s colonial legacy, the Balfour Declaration, and its role in the dispossession of the Palestinian people,” he said.