CANBERRA, Aug 11 (Alliance News): Australia will recognise a Palestinian state at next month’s United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced on Monday, joining recent moves by France, Britain, and Canada that have increased international pressure on Israel.
Albanese said the recognition, set to be declared during the 80th UNGA session in September, aims to bolster momentum for a two-state solution, a ceasefire in Gaza, and the release of hostages.
He stressed the decision followed assurances from the Palestinian Authority that Hamas would have no role in any future Palestinian state.
“A two-state solution is humanity’s best hope to break the cycle of violence in the Middle East and to end the conflict, suffering, and starvation in Gaza,” Albanese said at a news conference in Canberra after a cabinet meeting.
The Australian prime minister said he had spoken to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last Thursday, urging a political rather than military resolution.
He criticised Israel’s plan to take military control of Gaza and accused Netanyahu’s government of undermining the two-state solution by expanding illegal settlements, threatening annexation in the occupied territories, and rejecting any Palestinian statehood.
Albanese, alongside Foreign Minister Penny Wong, said the Palestinian Authority’s commitments to reform governance, demilitarise, and hold elections, along with Arab League demands for Hamas to end its rule in Gaza, had created a window for progress.
Meanwhile, New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said Wellington is considering recognition of a Palestinian state, with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s cabinet set to decide in September ahead of the UN Leaders’ Week.
Peters emphasised New Zealand’s independent foreign policy, saying the decision would be based on whether the Palestinian territories were moving toward becoming a viable and legitimate state.
“New Zealand has been clear for some time that our recognition of a Palestinian state is a matter of when, not if,” Peters noted.
