British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is expected to formally announce the UK's recognition of a Palestinian state this coming weekend, the London Times reported Wednesday. According to the report, Starmer postponed the declaration to avoid overshadowing the state visit of US President Donald Trump, given that Washington has opposed the move.
Starmer first stated his intention to proceed at the end of July, following a similar announcement by French President Emmanuel Macron as part of his initiative to advance a two-state solution. The prime minister is expected to make the official announcement after Trump concludes his visit to the UK. Starmer delayed the declaration until after Trump's departure, fearing it would dominate the agenda at Thursday's joint press conference.
The US has strongly opposed the Franco-Saudi initiative. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said at a press conference in Ecuador last week that European countries intention to recognize a Palestinian state would create problems and force Israel to respond.
In his July address, Starmer laid out several conditions for Israel to prevent a unilateral British move: reaching a ceasefire in Gaza, committing to a two-state solution, refraining from annexing Judea and Samaria, taking significant steps to end the conflict in Gaza, allowing the UN to resume humanitarian aid, and committing to long-term sustainable peace. He said he would make his decision before attending the UN summit and based on ungoing developments.
Since May, Macron has led an effort to push Western recognition of a Palestinian state, aiming to restore momentum to the two-state solution. His July 24 announcement at the UN General Assembly of France's commitment sparked a wave of similar pledges from other nations, including the UK, Canada, Australia, Belgium, Malta and others. Earlier this week, Luxembourg signaled that it too would join the initiative.
On September 21, during the annual UN gathering of world leaders in New York, France will host a major diplomatic summit with wide international participation to promote a two-state solution. The summit will be based on the principles of the New York Declaration, signed in August by a broad coalition of countries, including Arab states, calling for an end to the war in Gaza, the advancement of a two-state framework and the disarmament of the Hamas terrorist organization.
