France considers recognizing Palestinian statehood by June, Macron says

French President Emmanuel Macron has indicated that France may formally recognize the State of Palestine as early as June 2025.

Speaking in an interview with France 5 television, Macron framed the potential move as part of a broader diplomatic initiative led alongside Saudi Arabia, Caliber.Az reports.

According to the French leader, Paris aims to co-chair an international conference with Riyadh, likely referring to a summit on Palestine already announced by the foreign ministers of Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia. The event is scheduled to take place in June.

“We could finalize a process of mutual recognition with several countries,” Macron stated, suggesting that France might act in concert with other nations in recognizing Palestinian statehood.

France has consistently backed the two-state solution as the framework for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This position remained unchanged even after the October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas on Israel. However, an official recognition of Palestine by France would mark a significant policy shift and risk triggering diplomatic tensions with Israel.

Israeli officials have strongly opposed such moves. Reacting to Macron's remarks, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar warned that unilateral recognition would amount to “a reward for terror” and an endorsement of Hamas.

“Unilateral recognition of a fictional Palestinian state by any country, given the reality we all know, would be a reward for terror and a boost for Hamas,” Sa’ar said. In his view, such actions “will not bring peace, security, or stability to the region—on the contrary, they will push those goals even further away.”

As of now, 146 out of 193 United Nations member states recognize Palestine as a sovereign state. In the past year alone, several nations—including Armenia, Slovenia, Ireland, Norway, Spain, the Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and Barbados—joined the list of supporters.

However, major Western powers such as the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany have so far withheld recognition.

Meanwhile, US policy has taken a sharp turn under President Donald Trump, who on February 4, 2025, suspended aid to the Palestinians and once again withdrew the United States from the UN Human Rights Council. Trump also declared plans for the US to take control of the Gaza Strip and oversee its development, on the condition that approximately one million Palestinians be relocated from the territory.

In a parallel move, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz instructed the Israel Defense Forces on February 6 to prepare a plan that would facilitate the voluntary departure of Gaza residents to any country willing to receive them.

In response to the escalating humanitarian and political crisis, the Arab League held an emergency summit on March 5. The summit concluded with a declaration reaffirming the Palestinians’ right to statehood and condemning any attempts to forcibly displace them from their lands. The declaration also called on Israel to halt its military operations in the West Bank, stressing that the forced relocation of Palestinians is unacceptable under international law.

By Tamilla Hasanova