How exasperation drove 3 Israel allies towards recognising Palestinian state

When Spain, Ireland and Norway announced in May 2024 that they would recognise a Palestinian state, Israel's closer allies dismissed the move as unhelpful to solving the crisis in Gaza.

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While France, Britain and Canada stressed their support for establishing two states with recognised borders as the long-term solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict, they were wary of being seen to reward Hamas, of damaging relations with Israel and Washington, and of squandering diplomatic capital.

"I will not do an 'emotional' recognition," French President Emmanuel Macron said at the time.

But as Israeli restrictions on aid escalated Gaza's humanitarian crisis and a two-month truce ended in March, talks began in earnest that would lead three of the Group of Seven major Western economies to set out plans to recognise a Palestinian state in September. "The possibility of a two-state solution is being eroded before our eyes... that has been one of the factors that has brought us to this point to try to reverse, with partners, this cycle," Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said on July 31.

France and Saudi Arabia formed a plan to have more Western countries move towards Palestinian recognition, while Arab states would be pushed to take a stronger line against Hamas. The pair wanted their proposals to gain acceptance at a United Nations conference in June, but they struggled to gain traction. The meeting was then postponed due to Israeli air strikes on Iran and amid intense US diplomatic pressure.