Push to recognise Palestinian state is clear message to Israel: Palestinian FM

The planned recognition by several countries of a Palestinian state at a UN summit sends a clear message to Israel on its “illusions” of continuing its occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, Palestinian foreign minister Varsen Aghabekian Shahin told AFP on Wednesday.

Several countries including Australia, Belgium, Canada, France and the United Kingdom have announced plans to formally recognise a Palestinian state at the United Nations summit co-chaired by Riyadh and Paris on September 22 in New York.

Shahin, who said she was “shocked” by the European Union’s inaction over the nearly two-year war in Gaza, said this new diplomatic push is the long-awaited fulfilment of a promise made by the international community to the Palestinians.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted “there will be no Palestinian state”, and last month Israel approved a major West Bank settlement that the international community has warned threatens the viability of a future such state.

– What are your expectations for next week? –

This recognition will not immediately change things on the ground.

So people might say: but what is the recognition, what does it mean if I don’t see an end of the aggression on the Gaza Strip?

But it builds up towards ending the aggression on the Gaza Strip.

Recognition is not symbolic. It is something that is very important because it sends a very clear message to the Israelis on their illusions on continuing their occupation forever.

And it sends a clear message to the Palestinians that ‘we are with your right to self-determination’.

And it empowers and strengthens the two-state concept and solution. And it gives us a push for the future, because we will build on it.

Each country that recognises will have commitments based on that recognition.

Every bit counts. We cannot negate the fact that recognition brings us closer to actual materialisation of the state, but we also need to work on the permanent ceasefire and work on the other aspects that need to take place so that people see a future in Palestine.

– Israel has criticised announcements intending to recognise statehood. How do you respond? –

The world today understands and sees what Israel is capable of as an (occupying) state, as an expansionist, annexationist state, and understands what Israel is saying because they don’t shy away from saying it.

Israel is telling the world that: ‘I want to go forward, I want to build this greater Israel’, which entails the infringement on the security and independence and sovereignty of neighbouring states.

The non-recognition will empower extremists on any side because extremists do not want to see two states.

– And if Israel refuses? –

Israel does not want to negotiate.

So do we stay at the mercy of this occupier state until it starts thinking that maybe we want to negotiate? If people think Israel would come forward with negotiations, it never will.

What has happened since we embarked on this peace process and onwards is that we’ve seen more of our land annexed by Israel, more settlement activities, more violence by settlers, and more suffocation of our life. We will not take this any further. We are just asking for our rights as enshrined in international law.

We know they will try to annex more, and we see it on the ground. We see the gates that are erected on the entrances of villages and cities. There will be increased violence.

Israel cannot continue to act as a state above the law because if Israel wants to live in the area in peace and security, it needs to act as a normal state.

We can’t just sit back and say, you know, this is Israel and we can’t do anything about it.

– Is opposition from the United States a problem? –

Eventually there will be the whole world on one side and probably Israel and a few countries on the other side.

I think (recognition) is a game changer, and as such we need to look at it positively and continue moving forward.

We hope that eventually (the United States) will come to terms that what is needed in this area is definitely two states.

– Some countries are making recognition conditional on uncertain prospects such as a Gaza ceasefire or the disarmament of Hamas. Could this jeopardise your momentum? –

On the disarming of Hamas, I think there is a consensus on this in the Arab world, in the Islamic world, I think a worldwide consensus on the disarming.

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And even Hamas is saying that we do not want to have a part in the governance of Gaza in the day after.

And I think if a peace agreement is reached, and there is a ceasefire, a permanent one, that should not be the problem.