French President Emmanuel Macron is pressuring British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to recognise a Palestinian state. London and Paris are at odds over the speed and approach to formally recognising Palestine, the Telegraph reports, citing British government sources.
British and French sources told the newspaper that Starmer and Macron are expected to discuss the situation in Gaza and the issue of recognising Palestine next week during the latter’s three-day state visit to the UK.
“Emmanuel Macron is pressuring Keir Starmer to recognise Palestine as a state… Downing Street and the Elysee Palace are at odds over the speed and approach to formally recognising a Palestinian state. The issue is expected to be discussed in private talks,” the report says.
According to the newspaper’s sources, Paris believes that recognizing Palestine could be a catalyst for bringing the two-state solution closer, but British officials fear that the move could be “merely symbolic” unless there are sufficiently tough conditions on what the Palestinian movement Hamas must do in return.
“We support a two-state solution that guarantees security and stability for both the Israeli and Palestinian people. Our long-standing position is that we will recognize a Palestinian state at the most opportune time for the peace process,” the newspaper quotes an unnamed British Foreign Office official as saying.
In addition, according to the Telegraph, the parties are expected to sign a one-for-one migrant swap agreement, announce joint work on civilian nuclear projects, and continue planning for the deployment of a European peacekeeping force in Ukraine after the ceasefire.
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