Latest news with #statehood
CBC
7 hours ago
- Politics
- CBC
Carney asked if Canada consulted U.S. on recognizing Palestinian state
'We make our own independent foreign policy decisions,' Prime Minister Mark Carney said when asked by a reporter whether the U.S. was briefed on Canada's decision to recognize Palestine as a state.
Irish Times
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Irish Times
Canada to recognise Palestinian state at UN General Assembly
Canada said Wednesday that it would recognise Palestine as a state, if the Palestinian Authority commits to making certain changes including holding elections. Prime minister Mark Carney said he had discussed such changes in a call with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas , and plans to formally recognise Palestine during the United Nations General Assembly in September. The Canadian announcement follows similar ones by France and Britain , increasing the pressure on Israel to end the nearly two-year-old war in the Gaza Strip . The Israeli foreign ministry condemned the decision in a social media post. READ MORE 'The change in the position of the Canadian government at this time is a reward for Hamas and harms the efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and a framework for the release of the hostages,' the ministry said. Mr Carney said the recognition was contingent on commitments by the Palestinian Authority to exclude Hamas from any government, to return hostages to Israel and to hold elections next year, the first since 2006. After France said last week it would recognise Palestinian statehood, Mr Carney reiterated his party's long-running endorsement of a two-state solution with 'a free and viable Palestine living in peace and side-by-side in peace and security with Israel'. [ US says France's decision to recognise Palestinian state 'reckless' Opens in new window ] At the United Nations on Monday, Anita Anand, Canada's foreign minister, said her country would give the Palestinian Authority 10 million Canadian dollars, about €6.3 million, to help lay the foundation for an independent state. After France's announcement, Britain said it would recognise Palestinian statehood, but with a caveat: it would hold off if Israel agreed to a ceasefire. Mr Carney made his announcement following a call with British prime minister Keir Starmer on Tuesday in which the two leaders discussed 'the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian disaster in Gaza, as well as the United Kingdom's statement on the recognition of a Palestinian state,' Mr Carney's office said in a statement. Before Mr Carney spoke Wednesday, Canada's foreign affairs department issued a joint statement from 15 countries, including France, Australia and Ireland, calling on other nations to either recognise the state of Palestine or 'express the willingness or the positive consideration' of its statehood before the meeting of the United Nations General Assembly in September. [ Analysis: Was Keir Starmer pushed on Palestinian statehood or did he wait for right moment? Opens in new window ] Since he became prime minister in the spring, Mr Carney, the leader of the Liberal Party, has ratcheted up Canada's criticisms of Israel's actions in Gaza and repeatedly condemned the humanitarian crisis there. The decision to recognise Palestine as a state will almost certainly strain relations with the United States. Mr Carney's government is currently in trade talks with the Trump administration that, should they fail, could lead to increased tariffs as soon as Friday. The move on Palestinian statehood will also likely be divisive domestically. During the recent Canadian election, the Conservative Party, campaigned on a platform that strongly endorsed the policies and actions of Israel in Gaza under prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu. It also promised to deport foreign citizens who participated in pro-Palestine demonstrations. – This article originally appeared in The New York Times
Irish Times
19 hours ago
- Politics
- Irish Times
Was Keir Starmer pushed on Palestinian statehood or did he wait for right moment?
In the end, Keir Starmer acted. After an emergency cabinet meeting lasting about 90 minutes on Tuesday, the British prime minister put the UK on an path to recognising Palestine as a state, probably as soon as September. For Labour MPs and cabinet ministers who have lobbied Starmer to take this decisive diplomatic step for months, there was huge relief, coupled with frustration that it had taken so long. 'He was pushed,' one senior Labour MP said. That is strongly denied by Starmer's allies, who insisted the prime minister was just waiting for the moment when recognition of a Palestinian state would have the most impact. 'It was always when, not if,' one said. Starmer has frustrated many in the Labour Party – not just left-wingers – over his handling of the Gaza crisis and what some MPs have seen as a lack of urgency in his response to the grim scenes unfolding there. READ MORE When French president Emmanuel Macron announced last week he would recognise Palestinian statehood at the United Nations General Assembly in September, that frustration with Starmer turned to anger. 'Number 10 had loads of incoming fire over the weekend,' one minister said. More than 130 Labour MPs signed a letter calling on Starmer to move now to Palestinian state recognition. Starmer's aides insisted the end result of Tuesday's cabinet meeting was '100 per cent unity' behind a position that is most likely to see Britain recognise a Palestinian state around the time of the UN General Assembly. 'One way or another you get to Palestinian recognition,' one Starmer ally said, after the prime minister set out a 'UK plan' for a stable peace between Israelis and Palestinians, which he hopes will win wide international support. Under Starmer's plan, Britain will recognise a Palestinian state in September unless Israel takes 'substantive steps to end the appalling situation in Gaza', agrees to a ceasefire and commits to a long-term, sustainable peace based on a two-state solution. Emily Thornberry, Labour chair of the House of Commons foreign affairs committee, said bluntly: 'That's not going to happen.' She said the only way it could conceivably happen would be if Israel changed its government before September. But even in the extremely unlikely event that Binyamin Netanyahu , Israel's prime minister, agreed with Starmer's 'conditions', that would still create a pathway for Britain recognising Palestine as part of a two-state solution. Starmer has been advised throughout by Jonathan Powell, his national security adviser, who has stressed the importance of holding back recognition until it might make some difference. He notes that more than 140 countries have already recognised a Palestinian state to little effect. Powell, an architect of the Northern Ireland peace process, wanted Britain to act with other allies, but Macron's surprise decision to announce the French position last week left Starmer looking like he was being buffeted by events. Starmer has been suspected by some inside the Labour Party of being too soft on Netanyahu ever since an LBC interview in October 2023, when he was asked whether Israel's right to self defence extended to cutting off power and water to Gaza. 'I think that Israel does have that right,' Starmer replied. He subsequently claimed he was answering a previous question and was not backing the cutting off of crucial supplies to Gaza, but the perception stuck. YouGov polling found that of those Labour voters in 2024 who had subsequently switched their support to the Greens, some 25 per cent named the ruling party's stance on Gaza as a reason. A new party set up by Jeremy Corbyn , the former leftwing Labour leader, will be mining the same seam of voters. Ministers as well as Labour MPs have been frustrated with Starmer. After Macron announced his stance on Palestinian statehood, one minister said: 'The block is Keir himself as well as his senior advisers and their desire to stay close to the US.' Downing Street officials admitted the United States might react negatively to Starmer's ultimatum to Netanyahu. Marco Rubio , US secretary of state, said last week that Macron's move was 'a reckless decision that only serves Hamas propaganda'. Donald Trump was less hostile to the idea during his meetings with Starmer in Scotland this week, suggesting that he would not be too upset if the UK went down the same route as France. The US president's comments on scenes of 'real starvation' in Gaza also changed the mood. On the way back from Scotland aboard Air Force One, Trump said he had 'no view on that' when asked about the UK's announcement – claiming Starmer had barely raised the matter of Palestinian statehood – while also appearing to question the case for pressuring Israel. Starmer hopes his plan will garner support from allies – he is due to speak shortly to Canada's Mark Carney – and that he can answer his Labour critics by putting himself at the forefront of a fresh push for peace. But Trump is wary of the UK plan, while Germany's Friedrich Merz is unlikely to back a Palestinian state any time soon. Nor is there any sign that Netanyahu will change his approach to Gaza and endorse a peace process based on a two-state solution for fear of Britain and France formally recognising a Palestinian state in September. However, Starmer's plan was backed by the British public in a poll by YouGov released on Tuesday, which showed that 45 per cent of people supported recognition of a Palestinian state, with only 14 per cent opposed. Starmer, who is also trying to galvanise an international aid effort, has belatedly aligned himself with his party and the public on Palestinian statehood. Many Labour figures wish it had just happened sooner. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2025
ABC News
a day ago
- Politics
- ABC News
Recognising Palestine + why YouTube is fighting Australia
The Australian government is being pressured to recognise Palestinian statehood after the UK gave Israel an ultimatum. So what is statehood? And how would recognising Palestine change Israel's bombardment of the region? Plus, the under-16 social media ban list has been announced, and YouTube is not happy. Listen now: 01.56 - Why the conversation around statehood is changing 05.23 - What recognising Palestine would mean 21.24 - YouTube v Australia Guests: Ben Saul, UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Counter-terrorism Ben Saul, UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Counter-terrorism Ange Lavoipierre, national technology reporter, ABC Get the whole story from Hack:
Free Malaysia Today
3 days ago
- Politics
- Free Malaysia Today
More than 220 UK MPs urge Starmer to recognise Palestinian state
The statement said the UK's recognition, while not creating a free Palestine, would still carry significant influence. (Wikimedia Commons pic) LONDON : More than 220 British MPs, including dozens from the ruling Labour party, demanded Friday that the UK government formally recognise a Palestinian state, further increasing pressure on prime minister Keir Starmer. The call, in a letter signed by lawmakers from nine UK political parties, came less than 24 hours after French President Emmanuel Macron said that his country would formally recognise a Palestinian state at a UN meeting in September. France would be the first G7 country – and the most powerful European nation to date – to make the move, already drawing condemnation from Israel and the US. Starmer has come under rising domestic and international pressure over recognising Palestinian statehood, as opposition intensifies to the ongoing war in Gaza amid fears of mass starvation there. 'We urge you to officially recognise the state of Palestine at the conference next week,' the 221 UK lawmakers wrote in the joint letter, referring to a July 28-29 UN conference co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia in New York. 'Whilst we appreciate the UK does not have it in its power to bring about a free and independent Palestine, UK recognition would have a significant impact,' it said. The signatories, from parties including the centre-right Conservatives and centrist Liberal Democrats, as well as regional parties in Scotland and Wales, cited Britain's 'historic connections and our membership on the UN Security Council'. They also noted the country's role in helping to create the state of Israel through the 1917 Balfour Declaration. 'Responsibility' 'Since 1980 we have backed a two-state solution. Such a recognition would give that position substance as well as living up to a historic responsibility we have to the people,' they added. In the face of growing pressure on the issue, the UK government has maintained its longstanding stance that it supports a two-state solution to the conflict in the Middle East. But it has insisted that the conditions are currently not right for formal recognition of a Palestinian state. In a statement Friday following a call about Gaza with his counterparts in France and Germany, Starmer said he was 'working on a pathway to peace in the region'. 'Recognition of a Palestinian state has to be one of those steps. I am unequivocal about that. But it must be part of a wider plan,' he added. A number of factors could deter Starmer from making the move, including wanting to avoid angering US President Donald Trump. The American leader, who lands later Friday in Scotland for a five-day visit, dismissed Macron's announcement before departing Washington, saying it 'doesn't carry weight'. The pressure around recognising Palestinian statehood has been building on Starmer's government, with nearly 60 Labour MPs reportedly urging Foreign Secretary David Lammy to make the move in a private letter earlier in July. Meanwhile, Macron raised the issue during his UK state visit this month, publicly urging London to work with Paris on a formal recognition announcement.
