Ireland considers May 21 as date to recognise Palestinian state

Ireland, Spain and a number of other EU member states are considering May 21 as the date on which they will jointly recognise the State of Palestine.

Two sources have said that May 21 is being looked at, RTÉ News reports.

A third source said contacts between Dublin and Madrid, as well as between Slovenia and Malta, have been intensifying with a view to the countries jointly recognising Palestinian statehood.

In a statement jointly signed on March 22, former taoiseach Leo Varadkar and his Spanish, Maltese and Slovenian counterparts said they had discussed their "readiness to recognise Palestine and said that we would do so when it can make a positive contribution and the circumstances are right".

Taoiseach Simon Harris spoke to his Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez on May 6, which a Government spokesperson called "a good and thorough call" regarding the "grave situation in the Middle East".

The spokesperson said: "On recognition [of Palestine], our work continues together on recognising the State of Palestine. They reaffirmed the wish for both Spain and Ireland to recognise Palestine, agreeing that formal recognition is an important part of acknowledging that a two-state solution is the only way to bring about peace and stability in the region, with a State of Palestine and the State of Israel living side-by-side in peace and security."

A spokesperson for Tánaiste Micheál Martin told RTÉ News: "Discussions with a number of like-minded European partners are ongoing on the recognition of the State of Palestine."

They went on: "Ireland's focus will continue to be on ensuring a decision on recognition has a positive impact on the prospects for a peaceful resolution to the conflict, based on a two-state solution, and supports progress towards comprehensive regional peace, based on the principles of the Arab Peace Plan."

Speaking at a meeting of the Green parliamentary party, the Tánaiste also said Ireland will vote in favour of Palestinian membership of the UN when the UN General Assembly considers the issue on Friday.

Irish officials expect this vote to be carried by a significant margin.

He told the Green Party meeting that Ireland will intervene in the genocide case at the International Court of Justice soon after South Africa has filed its substantive case, which he expects to happen by October.

The Tánaiste outlined too how Ireland is pushing the European Commission for a response to the letter sent by Ireland and Spain seeking a review of the EU-Israel Association Agreement.

As well as the death toll in Gaza, he spoke of his concern at the fact that there are now thousands of children who have lost their parents, while many of the adults who will be expected to rebuild Gaza have been traumatised by the destruction.

Currently, eight EU member states recognise the State of Palestine, the most recent being Sweden in 2014.

Ireland has been in ongoing discussions with "like-minded" states for a number of months, on the basis that recognition could happen in conjunction with the Arab Peace Plan on a long-term solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

During a news conference between the Tánaiste and his Jordanian counterpart, Ayman Safadi, in Amman last month, Mr Safadi said that recognition of Palestinian statehood upfront would avoid the two-state solution becoming an open-ended and ultimately elusive goal.