France recognizes the Palestinian state but Germany and Italy do not yet say

President Emmanuel Macron will officially recognize a Palestinian state in New York on Monday, supported by several other European countries, describing France’s decision as a “necessity”.

Regarding the decision of a decision by the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, Macron said that his decision would be the “beginning of a political process and a peace and security plan for everyone”.

France, like the United Kingdom, has considerable diplomatic weight as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council and the G7, and coordinates the push with Saudi Arabia on the fringes of the United Nations General Assembly of this week.

Paris will not be joined by two of the other major European states in the G7, Germany and Italy, not by the United States either.

Israel denounced this decision as a reward for Hamas, and its UN ambassador called a circus on Monday.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted that there will be no Palestinian state west of the river in Jordan, and President Isaac Herzog said that it would only think “would embrace the dark forces”.

The French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jean-Noël Barrot, was categorical, that the decision of his country was a “categorical rejection” of Hamas, but declared that he was “symbolic, immediate and political, demonstrating France’s commitment to the two-state solution”.

Find out more: The United Kingdom says that Israel must not retaliate against the state push

What does a Palestinian state mean?

Barrot talked about Macron’s statement as a “great diplomatic victory for our country”. Paris has said that Belgium, Luxembourg and Malta should also announce formal recognition, as well as the tiny states of Andorra and San Marino. Portugal made its own statement late Sunday.

A number of other European countries have already recognized a Palestinian state, including Spain and Norway last year, but Macron’s decision is considered a bet by certain domestic commentators who could make little difference on the ground.

Before Macron’s announcement, the Palestinian and Israeli flags were posted on the Eiffel Tower on Sunday evening. A number of city halls in France also piloted Palestinian flags on Monday, despite government order to local prefects to maintain neutrality.

Pro-Palestinian demonstrations also took place in Italy, in some 80 cities in Italy, where the government of Giorgia Meloni recently declared that he could be “counterproductive” to recognize a state that did not exist.

Public transport and ports were disrupted during a day of action organized by certain unions. A key metro line in Milan was closed, while the university students of Turin and Bologna blocked the best access conference rooms.

In Germany, the government affirms that the Palestinian state is not currently under debate, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Johann Wadephul, explained on Monday in New York that “for Germany, the recognition of a Palestinian state comes more at the end of the process. But this process must begin”.

Although Germany is one of the closest allies of Israel in Europe, his chancellor, Friedrich Merz, has become more and more critical of the Israeli military response to Gaza.

Officials of the European Union have also hardened their language against Israel in recent weeks. The president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen called for an end last week to “horrible events which take place daily in Gaza”.

In an interview with CBS News on Sunday, President Macron spoke of a progressive plan that would be oriented towards the isolation of Hamas.

The first step would involve a ceasefire, a release of all hostages and then stabilization of Gaza, he explained. The second would imply the governance and reconstruction of Gaza, and the “third package, the prospect of two states”.

The opening of a French embassy would be conditional for the release of hostages still held by Hamas, he said.

But Macron’s large -scale decision to the United Nations has been criticized by some of his political opponents.

Jordan Bardella, from the far -right national rally, said that it was “error, while Hamas still has Israeli hostages”, and he stressed that this was equivalent to “rewarding the atrocities committed on October 7 (2023), during the deadliest attack ever known by the State of Israel”.