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Shkruar nga PamfletiEmmanuel Macron decided to recognize the state of Palestine in the face of the diplomatic impasse and the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in Gaza.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio made it clear on Thursday that he "strongly opposes" French President Emmanuel Macron's decision to recognize the state of Palestine during the UN General Assembly in September.
He described it as a unilateral decision that, according to him, distances peace.
"This unilateral decision serves nothing but Hamas propaganda and is a setback for the peace process. It is a slap in the face to the victims of October 7, 2023," US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a post on the X platform.
Meanwhile, the US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, declared in June that he no longer considers the creation of an independent Palestinian state a priority of American foreign policy.
French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Thursday that France will recognize Palestine as a state. The decision comes at a time of growing global anger over the mass starvation in Gaza.
Macron said in a post on the "X" network that he will formalize this decision at the United Nations General Assembly in September.
"The urgency today is for the war in Gaza to stop and the civilian population to be saved," he said.
The French president had offered support for Israel after the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023, and has often spoken out against anti-Semitism, but has expressed increasing disappointment with Israel's war in Gaza, especially in recent months.
"A ceasefire is needed immediately, the release of all hostages and massive humanitarian aid for the people of Gaza. It is also necessary to demilitarize Hamas, secure and reconstruct Gaza. Finally, the State of Palestine must be built, its sustainability guaranteed and, through the acceptance of demilitarization and full recognition of Israel, it must contribute to the security of all in the Middle East. There is no other alternative," he wrote in "X".
With this decision, France becomes the largest and most influential country in Europe to recognize Palestine, joining over 140 other countries that have already taken this step.
The news comes at a time of growing global anger over the humanitarian situation in Gaza and after the US broke off ceasefire talks, which accused Hamas of a lack of goodwill.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry has not yet reacted to France's decision.
The Palestinians seek independence for the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza, territories captured by Israel in the 1967 war, but the Israeli government continues to oppose the demand. They argue that such a state would reward militant groups after Hamas's attack on October 7, 2023.
Israel annexed East Jerusalem immediately after the 1967 war and considers it part of its undivided capital. In the West Bank, it has built dozens of settlements, some of them as large neighborhoods, where more than 500,000 Jewish settlers with Israeli citizenship live.
Meanwhile, about 3 million Palestinians living in this territory are under Israeli military control, while the Palestinian Authority exercises limited control only in urban areas. @Pamfleti
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