Canada won't recognize statehood yet

Trudeau says ‘credible path towards lasting peace’ is needed, recognition of Palestine will come

- TONDA MACCHARLES AND MARK RAMZY

Canada is not willing to follow Norway, Ireland and Spain in immediately recognizing Palestinian statehood, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau indicated Wednesday.

But Trudeau also emphasized his government’s recent shift in position — that it is willing to do so at some future point even in the absence of a negotiated “two-state” solution to the long-standing Israel-Palestine conflict.

For now, however, he is clearly not ready to take the next step as three European countries did in coordinated fashion, announcing they would formally recognize a “state” of Palestine starting Tuesday. Norway, Ireland and Spain claimed it would give impetus to peace in the region, a position that a top U.S. official said defied “logic.”

Neither Trudeau nor Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly echoed that U.S. criticism, or directly commented on the move. But when the NDP demanded Canada follow their lead, the prime minister underscored the urgent need for “a credible path towards lasting peace.”