The UK, Australia, Canada, and Portugal all announced on Sunday their formal recognition of a Palestinian state, a step that comes a day before the opening of the UN General Assembly in New York.
“Today, to revive the hope of peace for the Palestinians and Israelis, and a two-state solution, the United Kingdom formally recognises the State of Palestine,” British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a post on X.
In response to the announcements, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that there would never be a Palestinian state and bragged about his work over the years to prevent one.
“It’s not going to happen. There will be no Palestinian state to the west of the Jordan River,” Netanyahu said. “For years, I have prevented the creation of that terror state, against tremendous pressure, both domestic and from abroad.
The Israeli leader also said Israel would continue expanding Jewish settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. “Moreover, we have doubled the Jewish settlement in Judea and Samaria, and we will continue on this path,” he said.
The Trump administration has discouraged its allies from recognizing a Palestinian state and has banned Palestinian Authority officials from attending the General Assembly. Trump has previously threatened a trade deal with Canada over its plans to recognize Palestine.
Netanyahu said that he will announce his response to the Western countries recognizing Palestine after he returns from the US. The Israeli leader will attend the General Assembly in New York and is expected to travel to Washington for his fourth White House visit of the year.
Netanyahu and his government are considering annexing parts of the West Bank, and some Israeli officials called for the Israeli prime minister to take the step after the UK’s announcement.
“The days when Britain and other countries determined our future are over, the mandate has ended, and the only response to the anti-Israeli move is sovereignty over the homeland of the Jewish people in Judea and Samaria, and the removal of the foolish idea of a Palestinian state from the agenda forever,” Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich wrote on X. “Mr. Prime Minister, this is the time, and it is in your hands.”
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has also made clear that the Trump administration wouldn’t oppose Israel if it moved to officially annex territory in the West Bank. “The US has never asked Israel to not apply sovereignty,” Huckabee told Israeli media earlier this week. “I have repeatedly stated that the US respects Israel as a sovereign nation and will not tell Israel what to do.”
