:format(webp)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/grupoclarin/HE5HXRSMQBAPDMZZUEJMA6UMAE.jpg "Macron says recognizing a Palestinian state is not taboo for France")
PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron says recognition of a Palestinian state is not “taboo” for France, as international outrage grows over Israel’s operations in the Palestinian territories.
France and the European Union have long supported the two-state solution in the Middle East, but as part of a negotiated agreement. With talks stalled and the Israeli offensive against Hamas advancing, some European countries are expressing support for early recognition of a Palestinian state.
“Recognizing a Palestinian state is not a taboo for France,” Macron said in a meeting Friday in Paris with King Abdullah of Jordan. “We owe it to the Palestinians, whose aspirations have been trampled for too long. We owe it to the Israelis, who have experienced the worst anti-Semitic massacre of our time. “We owe it to a region that tries to overcome the promoters of chaos and the sowers of revenge.”
Macron did not elaborate on when and under what conditions France might recognize a Palestinian state, and is unlikely to make such a decision unilaterally. But France has important diplomatic weight as one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council.
“Our partners in the region, Jordan in particular, are working on it, we are working with them. “We are ready to contribute to this in Europe and the Security Council,” Macron said.
He called for a ceasefire in Gaza and warned that an Israeli offensive in Rafah, on the border with Egypt, would cause an “unprecedented humanitarian disaster.”
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said weeks ago that his country could officially recognize a Palestinian state after a ceasefire in Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejects the creation of a Palestinian state, and negotiations for a two-state solution have been virtually deadlocked since 2009. If some of Israel’s key allies were to move forward in recognizing a Palestinian state, this could put pressure on the state. Jewish to resume negotiations.