Spain, Ireland seen tipping balance of bloc towards Palestine recognition

EU countries have signalled mixed responses to recognising Palestinian state.

Transcript

00:00 "The decision by three more countries to recognize Palestine as a state is symbolic, but has

00:08 practical implications," an expert on Middle East politics told Euronews.

00:15 An important point is that the recognition by Ireland, Spain and Norway refers to the

00:20 borders that existed in 1967 and not to the current Palestinian territory impacted by

00:26 the expansion of Israeli settlements.

00:52 France and Slovenia may soon follow suit, especially given the EU's formal support for

00:57 a two-state solution to bring an end to the crisis.

01:01 The analyst also says this could advance efforts for a ceasefire and the deployment of a peacekeeping

01:07 force in Gaza, in line with the Arab position advocating for the recognition of Palestinian

01:13 self-determination.

01:14 "Arab countries, Arab states have an important role to play in supporting a sustainable ceasefire

01:22 in Gaza and potentially also engaging afterwards, potentially in terms of deploying Arab troops.

01:29 The Palestinian Authority also has an important role to play in returning to Gaza and re-assuming

01:33 governance and security functions."

01:37 Only nine of the 27 member states of the EU recognize Palestine's statehood.

01:45 Some countries, such as Germany, Austria and Hungary, firmly support Israel, but have shown

01:50 a growing willingness to take on common EU positions, as demonstrated by their support

01:56 for a humanitarian pause in Gaza and the approval of EU sanctions against violent Israeli settlers.

02:02 [WHOOSH]