Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed on Monday that Australia intends to recognize Palestinian statehood at the upcoming General Assembly session next month.
Albanese stated that Australia “will acknowledge the right of the Palestinian people to their own state, based on assurances Australia has received from the Palestinian Authority,” a reference to the governing body overseeing a portion of the West Bank.
He indicated that these commitments encompassed the demilitarization of Gaza and the organization of elections, specifically excluding any involvement of Hamas in a Palestinian government. Australia has classified Hamas as a terrorist group, and Albanese reiterated his government’s demands on Monday for the group to release Israeli hostages abducted since the October 7, 2023, attacks.
Albanese further stated that Australia plans to collaborate with the international community to transform the right of Palestinian statehood into a “reality.”
According to Albanese, “A two-state solution represents humanity’s greatest prospect for ending the cycle of violence in the Middle East and concluding the conflict, suffering, and widespread hunger in Gaza.”
The Prime Minister described the situation in Gaza as having “exceeded the world’s most dire expectations.” He accused the Israeli government of persistently “disregarding international law and withholding adequate aid, food, and water from desperate individuals, including children.”
Albanese’s statement came after comparable pronouncements by leaders in France, Britain, and Canada. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticized Australia and other European nations for this action, alleging they were venturing into a “rabbit hole.”
The Israeli leader remarked on Sunday that “[T]his fabrication is disappointing and, in my view, actually shameful.”
Conversely, the Australian government has expressed disapproval of Netanyahu’s recently unveiled plans for a comprehensive new military offensive in Gaza.
Last week, the Australian leader conversed with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who assented to conditions set by Western leaders as they prepared to acknowledge a Palestinian state.
Albanese asserted, “This offers a chance to grant self-determination to the people of Palestine in a manner that isolates Hamas, disarms it, and expels it from the region permanently.”
Currently, almost 150 out of the 193 United Nations member states have acknowledged the State of Palestine, with many having done so several decades past. The United States and numerous Western allies have abstained, contending that Palestinian statehood ought to be the concluding phase of the conflict that commenced in 1948.
Meanwhile, Israeli leaders have resisted the recognition of a Palestinian state, asserting that such a move would incentivize terrorism and contribute minimally to bolstering the Palestinian Authority’s standing, given its loss of control over the Gaza Strip following a violent confrontation with Hamas in 2007. The militant organization has governed Gaza since that time.
The 2025 sessions of the UN General Assembly are scheduled to commence on September 9 and conclude on September 25.