Israel’s Foreign Minister, Gideon Saar, has condemned French President Emmanuel Macron’s declaration that Paris could recognise a Palestinian state by June, calling it a “prize” for terrorism.
“A unilateral recognition of a fictional Palestinian state, by any country, in the reality that we all know, will be a prize for terror and a boost for Hamas,” Saar said on X late Wednesday.
“These kind of actions will not bring peace, security and stability in our region closer, but the opposite – they only push them further away.”
Nearly 150 countries recognise a Palestinian state. In May Ireland, Norway, and Spain announced recognition in 2024, followed by Slovenia in June, prompted in part by condemnation of Israel’s assault of Gaza in response to Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023.
A “unilateral recognition” of a fictional Palestinian state, by any country, in the reality that we all know, will be a prize for terror and a boost for Hamas.
These kind of actions will not bring peace, security and stability in our region closer – but the opposite: they only…— Gideon Sa’ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) April 9, 2025
However, France would be the most prominent European nation to recognise a Palestinian state, a move that the United States has long opposed but that supporters regard as a crucial step toward regional stability.
On Wednesday, Macron said France plans to recognise a Palestinian state within months and could make the move at a UN conference in New York in June.
Such a move would also make France the first permanent member of the United Nations Security Council to recognise a Palestinian state.
France has long championed a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict, including after the October 7, 2023 attack.
But formal recognition by Paris of a Palestinian state would mark a major policy switch and risk antagonising Israel which insists such moves by foreign states are premature.
