Australia to recognise Palestinian state in September, New Zealand may follow
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Australia will recognise a Palestinian state in September at the United Nations General Assembly to add momentum for a two-state solution, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Monday.
Albanese, who made the announcement following a cabinet meeting, said recognition will be predicated on commitments Australia received from the Palestinian Authority, including that Hamas would have no involvement in any future state.
“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 at a news conference.
New Zealand considering recognition of Palestinian state, foreign minister says
New Zealand is considering recognition of a Palestinian state, Foreign Minister Winston Peters said on Monday.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s cabinet would make a formal decision in September and present the government’s approach at the U.N. Leaders’ Week, he said.
Several countries including Australia, Britain and Canada have announced in recent weeks that they will recognise a Palestinian state at September’s U.N. General Assembly.
Peters said that while some of New Zealand’s close partners had opted to recognise a Palestinian state, New Zealand had an independent foreign policy.
“We intend to weigh up the issue carefully and then act according to New Zealand’s principles, values and national interest,” Peters said in a statement.
The government needed to weigh up whether sufficient progress was being made towards the Palestinian territories becoming a viable and legitimate state for New Zealand to grant recognition.
