Norway, Ireland and Spain recognize the State of Palestine

Norway, Ireland and Spain formally recognized this Tuesday (May 28, 2024) the State of Palestine. The announcement was made last Wednesday (May 22), but was only formalized by the countries’ authorities this Tuesday. With this, the 3 nations will begin to establish direct diplomatic relations with Palestinian leaders.

When speaking about the decision, the Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, stated that the moment marks “time to move from words to action”.

“Recognition of the State of Palestine is not just a matter of historical justice with the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people. There is also an urgent need to achieve peace. It is the only way to move towards the only possible solution to achieve a future of peace: that of a Palestinian State that coexists alongside the State of Israel, in peace and security.”wrote Sánchez on X (formerly Twitter).

According to the Prime Minister of Ireland, Simon Harris, the measure “sends the message that there is a viable alternative to Hamas’s nihilism”.

“We wanted to recognize Palestine at the end of a peace process, however, we made this movement alongside Spain and Norway to keep the miracle of peace alive. Once again, I call on Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel to listen to the world and stop the humanitarian catastrophe we are seeing in Gaza.”Harris wrote in an official statement.

Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said that “There can be no peace in the Middle East if there is no recognition”.

“Recognition of Palestine is a means of supporting moderate forces who have lost ground in this prolonged and brutal conflict. It also sends a strong message to other countries to follow the example of Norway and several other European countries and recognize the State of Palestine.”Støre said in a government announcement.

In response, the Israeli government ordered the country’s ambassadors to Norway and Ireland to immediately return to Israel and said it would do the same in the case of Spain. The information is from the digital newspaper Politico.

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said the countries intended to send a message to the Palestinians and the entire world that “terrorism pays”. He said recognition could impede negotiations for the return of hostages who were captured by Hamas. And even make a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip less likely by “reward Hamas and Iranian jihadists”.

In total, 142 countries already recognized Palestinian sovereignty. Argentina, Brazil, the Vatican, Russia, China and India, for example, are part of the group. Find out here which countries recognize the State of Palestine (PDF – 32kB).