Canada and Malta announced Wednesday that they plan to formally recognize the state of Palestine at the United Nations General Assembly in September, joining France and the United Kingdom, which previously announced they would do so.
The move to recognize Palestine as a state comes amid a renewed push in Europe to pressure Israel to stop the devastating war in Gaza, which has led to widespread famine in the Strip, as well as to halt settlement expansion in the West Bank.
"The level of human suffering in Gaza is intolerable," Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said after a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, stressing the need for international cooperation to ensure lasting peace and stability in the region.
"Canada has long been committed to a two-state solution. An independent, viable and sovereign Palestinian state living side by side with the state of Israel in peace and security ," he added, A2 CNN reports.
In return, Canada wants to see "much-needed reforms" in the governance of the Palestinian Authority, including general elections to be held in 2026 with the exclusion of the militant group Hamas.
"Canada will increase its efforts in supporting strong democratic governance in Palestine," Carney concluded.
Malta has long supported Palestinian sovereignty and the self-determination of its citizens. Christopher Cutajar, permanent secretary at the Maltese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, made the announcement earlier at a United Nations conference on a two-state solution.
“As responsible actors, we have a duty to work to translate the concept of a two-state solution from theory to practice ,” Cutajar said.
This comes a day after Prime Minister Keir Starmer also announced that the UK would formally recognise the state of Palestine ahead of the annual meeting of world leaders at the 193-member General Assembly in September.
French President Emmanuel Macron confirmed his country's decision to formalize the move in September, a week ago, which would make France the first G7 country and the first permanent member of the UN Security Council to recognize Palestine, writes A2 CNN.
147 United Nations member states, including ten European Union member states, have already recognized the state of Palestine.
The act of recognition includes the recognition of the sovereignty and independence of Palestine within its pre-1967 Middle East war borders. This includes the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem.
Israel opposed a two-state solution and boycotted the UN conference held in New York City, along with its closest ally, the United States. (A2 Televizion)
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