Australia will recognize a Palestinian state at the 80th Session of the United Nations in September, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told reporters on Monday following a Cabinet meeting.The decision means Albanese joins the leaders of Canada, France, and the UK, who recently announced that they would be recognizing Palestinian statehood at the major U.N. gathering. New Zealand’s government has also indicated that it is considering the same move.
He said the move was “part of a coordinated global effort building momentum for a two-state solution.”
Canberra has held talks over the past two weeks with the leaders of several nations, according to the prime minister, including UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“A two-state solution is humanity’s best hope to break the cycle of violence in the Middle East, and to bring an end to the conflict, suffering, and starvation in Gaza,” the Australian premier said.
Albanese said on his website that his decision contributes to international pressure to formalize a two-state solution, call a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, and secure the release of hostages still being held by Hamas after the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel.
“Hamas continues to damage the prospects of a two-state solution and rejects Israel’s right to exist. Hamas must release the hostages cruelly taken on October 7, 2023 immediately, unconditionally and with dignity,” he said. “The Australian Government has consistently made clear there can be no role for Hamas in a Palestinian state.”
The Australian premier also said the Netanyahu government “is extinguishing the prospect of a two-state solution by rapidly expanding illegal settlements, threatening annexation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, and explicitly opposing any Palestinian state.”
Israel’s Response
Israeli Ambassador to Australia Amir Maimon released a statement on X that criticized Canberra’s decision, saying that Australia is undermining Israel’s security by recognizing a Palestinian state while Hamas “continues to kill, kidnap, and reject peace.”
“This decision will not change the reality on the ground. Peace is not achieved through declarations; it is achieved when those who have chosen terror abandon it and when violence and incitement end,” Maimon said. “Rewarding those who use terror as a political tool sends the dangerous message that violence brings political gains.”
The Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health reported on Aug. 10 that more than 61,000 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, 2023. The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its casualty figures, and The Epoch Times cannot verify their accuracy.
France, Canada, UK
In the past two months, some Western nations have indicated that they plan to recognize a Palestinian state. On July 24, Macron said he would formally announce France’s recognition of a Palestinian state at the U.N. gathering, citing the need to end the Israel–Hamas war.
“New Zealand has been clear for some time that our recognition of a Palestinian state is a matter of when, not if,” Peters said.
