In the run-up to the annual UN General Assembly, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and Portugal announced their recognition of Palestinian statehood. Today, around 150 countries worldwide officially recognize Palestine. Yet many Western governments have long followed a different line: full recognition was possible only after negotiations with Israel — the last round of which took place more than a decade ago. With the war in Gaza, that stance has begun to shift. Why, despite such broad international recognition, is Palestine still not universally regarded as a sovereign state — and what does this mean for the current stage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?
Why Did Western Countries Decide to Recognize Palestine Now?
Several factors came together at once. The annual UN General Assembly opened in New York, where France and Saudi Arabia initiated debates on the war in Gaza and the future of Israeli-Palestinian peace based on the principle of "two states for two peoples."
The PLO declared Palestine’s independence back in 1988, recognized mainly by Eastern Bloc countries, including Russia and China, as well as states of the Global South. For decades, the West held to another position: formal recognition was postponed until a deal with Israel on establishing a state within the 1967 borders — the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip. The United States and Germany, among others, still adhere to this line.
The last round of negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians took place in 2014. Since then, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly stressed that "there will never be a Palestinian state," and on the eve of the UN session, once again rejected the idea of "two states for two peoples."
Today, 156 of the UN’s 193 member states have officially recognized Palestine or declared their intention to do so. Yet it has not been granted full UN member-state status, remaining instead an observer without voting rights. Full membership requires Security Council approval — a step long blocked by three veto-wielding permanent members, the United States, the United Kingdom, and France. The policy shift in London and Paris fundamentally changes the balance, increasing pressure on Washington, Israel’s closest ally.
The decision by Western countries to recognize Palestine came in response to the war in Gaza, which erupted after the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023. The deepening humanitarian crisis, accusations of genocide against Israel, and mounting public discontent have forced governments to reconsider their earlier stance. At the September 22 session, Japan, Denmark, and the Netherlands also announced their readiness to recognize Palestine in the near future.
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What Counts as a State — And Can Palestine Be Considered One?
The question of Palestinian statehood largely comes down to political interpretation. International law offers no universally accepted criteria for what constitutes a state. One of the few documents attempting to define such parameters is the 1933 Montevideo Convention, signed at the Pan-American Conference. It lists four conditions: a permanent population, a defined territory, a functioning government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other states.
Palestine fully meets only the first of these conditions. Territorial disputes with Israel prevent any claim of stable, unified borders. The question of governance also remains unresolved: in the early 1990s, Israel recognized the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), created under the Oslo Accords as a temporary administrative body. Yet the PNA never controlled all Palestinian territories, and after Hamas took power in Gaza in 2007, its authority was reduced to the West Bank alone. This left a divided system of rule, while the current PNA leadership under Mahmoud Abbas has little popular legitimacy even there.
Restrictions enshrined in agreements between Israel and the PLO prevent Palestine, until a final settlement is reached, from signing full-scale international treaties in the economic, scientific, cultural, and educational spheres.
At the same time, international practice shows that recognition of statehood sometimes requires only two conditions — a permanent population and a defined territory. This is why the UN General Assembly, at the initiative of France and Saudi Arabia, will once again raise the question of the 1967 borders as the basis for negotiations.
Formally, Palestine already enjoys a high degree of international recognition. It maintains its own diplomatic missions abroad, including in countries that do not officially recognize its statehood, with the PNA overseeing their work. Several dozen states — from China and Russia to Canada, Germany, Tunisia, Egypt, Denmark, and Jordan — keep consulates in the West Bank or East Jerusalem. In addition, Palestinians take part in international sporting events, including the Olympic Games and World Cup tournaments.
How Could Recognition of Statehood Help the Palestinians?
For the Palestinian leadership, broader international recognition provides additional leverage in future negotiations with Israel. International law enshrines the principle that no state may use force against the territorial integrity or political independence of another. By recognizing Palestine as a state, the international community effectively gains grounds to view Israel’s actions in Gaza, as well as the occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem, as violations of this principle. This creates pressure on Tel Aviv to come to the negotiating table.
The more countries formally recognize Palestine, the easier it will be for it to join international organizations. In 1989, the PNA already tried to accede to the Geneva Conventions, but Switzerland rejected the application, questioning the existence of a Palestinian state. Today, under changed circumstances, such steps have become more realistic.
Formal recognition, despite the restrictions imposed by the 1995 agreements between Israel and the PNA, Hamas’s de facto control over Gaza, and the continuing occupation of certain territories, would allow Palestine to sign international treaties, exchange diplomatic missions, and facilitate access to humanitarian aid. In practice, however, the exercise of these rights would remain complicated by the need to coordinate many issues with Israeli authorities.
The most significant consequence of recognition by Western countries could be a redefinition of their relations with Israel. Any state that recognizes Palestine would need to ensure that its treaties with Israel do not undermine the Palestinians’ political and territorial integrity, as well as their economic, social, and cultural rights.
Trade would be the first area affected. If Israel exports goods produced in the occupied territories to a country that has recognized Palestine, this could be classified as a serious violation of international law. Restrictions could also extend to the supply of weapons or dual-use technologies to Israel.
Thus, recognition of Palestine could become a basis for sanctions against Israel. In the spring of 2024, European states had already introduced restrictions targeting settlers from the West Bank and far-right political groups backing the occupation. In September 2025, Spain went further: it imposed an arms embargo on Israel, barred entry to individuals “involved in genocide and war crimes” in Gaza, and closed its ports and airspace to ships and planes carrying military cargo bound for Israel.
On the eve of the UN General Assembly session, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas announced that the European Union will soon raise tariffs on Israeli goods and impose sanctions on two key figures from the far-right wing of the government — National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.
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Will the Recognition of Palestinian Statehood Stop the War in Gaza?
No.
Recognition of Palestine as a state remains primarily a symbolic step, serving only as a tool of diplomatic pressure on Israel and its principal ally—the United States.
The Israeli leadership is not considering a ceasefire in Gaza. On the contrary, political circles are debating the prospect of annexing the West Bank. This trajectory is reinforced by sentiments in Washington. Despite formally endorsing the two-state solution, the Trump administration has repeatedly signaled to its Western partners that recognition of Palestine would be regarded as an “anti-Israel move contrary to American interests.” On the eve of the UN General Assembly, the US imposed sanctions on Palestinian officials and revoked the visa of Mahmoud Abbas, head of the Palestinian Authority.
According to Israeli media, the authorities are prepared to shut down the consulates of Western countries that have recognized Palestine, starting with France. In official Jerusalem, such moves are framed as legitimizing the methods of Hamas.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remains a steadfast opponent of Palestinian statehood. He has openly admitted that since 1993 he has worked to derail the process initiated by the Oslo Accords. Instead, he promotes preserving the current arrangement: autonomy without clear international status under Israel’s military control. In early September, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich proposed responding to international recognition of Palestine with the annexation of most of the West Bank.
In mid-September 2025, the Israeli army launched a new offensive in Gaza. Netanyahu declared that it was Hamas’s key stronghold, which the army intended to destroy. The US backed the operation but urged that it be concluded “as quickly as possible.”
At the same time, Donald Trump’s administration has its own plans for the region, particularly for Gaza. Upon becoming president, he declared his readiness to place Gaza under US control, relocate most of its residents, and transform the territory into a “Middle Eastern Riviera.” In late summer 2025, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair presented Trump with such a plan. While it has no formal status, it directly contradicts the concept of creating an independent Palestinian state.