Eduardo González
The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, yesterday obtained the support of the Prime Minister of Norway, Jonas Gahr Støre, to the recognition of the State of Palestine as a “full member of the United Nations”, while confirming the support of the new Prime Minister in this regard. of Ireland, Simon Harris, in the same vein as his predecessor, Leo Varadkar.
Sánchez carried out a mini-tour yesterday through Norway (which does not belong to the EU but maintains strong association ties with the Union) and Ireland to obtain the support of other European leaders for the recognition of the Palestinian State, which has become one of its greatest foreign policy priorities.
Pedro Sánchez and Jonas Gahr Støre agreed on a joint statement, read to the media, in which they condemn the “atrocious terrorist attack of October 7 carried out by Hamas” and the “indiscriminate and disproportionate use of force” in Gaza “on the part of Israel” and demand “an immediate ceasefire and a drastic and sustained increase in humanitarian aid to and within Gaza.”
Likewise, Sánchez and Gahr Støre declare that “the implementation of the two-state solution, in which Israelis and Palestinians live side by side in peace and security, is vital for peace and stability in the region” and, they warn , in this sense, that “the Palestinian state is a condition for the realization of the two-state solution, in line with the UN partition plan of 1947.”
For this reason, the two heads of Executive show their “willingness to recognize Palestine as a State and support its full membership in the United Nations”, which they will do “when it can make a genuine and positive contribution to a political process towards peace between Israel and Palestine.”
The statement addresses coordination with initiatives such as the Arab Peace Plan, highlights “the vital role of UNRWA, both in Gaza and in the wider region”, welcomes “the announcements by countries to resume support for the organization ” and states that “all countries that have suspended their contributions should reconsider their decisions and fulfill their commitments.”
Ireland
In the afternoon, Sánchez traveled to Dublin, where he declared, in the joint press conference with the Irish Prime Minister, that both he and Harris agree that “the recognition of Palestine is a necessary step to discuss and implement the solution of the two states.”
Likewise, he recalled the “joint letter” sent by Spain and Ireland to the EU “on Israel’s obligations in terms of respect for human rights” and the declaration signed on March 22 by himself, by Harris’ predecessor, Leo Varadkar, and by the prime ministers of Malta, Robert Abela, and of Slovenia, Robert Golob, in which they committed to recognizing the State of Palestine when “the right circumstances arise.”
“We must fight for a political solution that brings peace and security to the region, and recognize and sponsor the coexistence and existence of two States, the Palestinian and the Israeli,” warned Pedro Sánchez. “The international community will not be able to help Palestine if it does not officially recognize it” and, therefore, “we are committed to supporting the recognition of Palestine as a full member state of the United Nations,” he added.
In response to questions from the press, Pedro Sánchez assured that “the recognition of the Palestinian State is getting closer and closer.” “The will that I express as President of the Government of Spain is that we can make this decision in a coordinated manner, in accordance with the competence that all Member States have,” he said. Sánchez has set the goal of recognizing Palestine before July, but he prefers to have the support of other European countries before taking the step.
Sánchez downplayed the statements made on Thursday afternoon by the spokesman for the North American State Department, Matthew Miller, who, when asked about the Spanish offensive, pointed out that each country must make its own decisions, but that Washington believes that the objective is achieved “better” through dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians and other countries in the region.
According to the head of the Executive, in that same statement by the American spokesperson he recognizes “the national sovereignty and competence” that all States have to “be able to define” their policy. “And that is what the Government of Spain is doing,” he said.
For his part, Simon Harris assured that the conditions for Ireland to recognize the Palestinian State are are “coming much closer” and that Ireland and Spain could recognize Palestine “together.” According to the Irish Prime Minister, the recognition of Palestine should not be interpreted as a reward for Hamas, but would contribute to creating a “political peace process” that would lead to a two-state solution.
Last Tuesday, the Irish Foreign Minister, Micheál Martin, declared that formal recognition of Palestine by Ireland “will occur” and announced his intention to present a formal proposal to the Government in this regard.
Rest of contacts
After the conclusion of this tour, Pedro Sánchez will continue his political contacts with other European leaders to obtain the greatest number of supports for the recognition of the Palestinian State.
This coming Monday, the President of the Government will receive the new Portuguese Prime Minister, Luis Montenegro, at Moncloa, in their first bilateral meeting since the latter took office, which took place last week.
The round of talks will continue next week in Slovenia, where he will meet with its prime minister, Robert Golob, and will later move to Brussels, where he will meet with the prime minister, Alexander de Croo, and will participate in the European Council in the next few days. April 17 and 18. De Croo (whose country currently holds the rotating presidency of the EU) and Sánchez traveled to Israel, Palestine and Egypt at the end of November, on the Prime Minister’s first tour to the region since the beginning of the escalation in Gaza.
