Canada ‘intends’ to recognise Palestinian state at UN General Assembly, says PM Carney

Canada plans to recognise a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September, Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Wednesday, a dramatic policy shift he said was necessary to preserve hopes of a two-state solution. “Canada intends to recognise the State of Palestine at the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in September 2025,” Carney said. US President Donald Trump on Thursday said Canada’s willingness to recognise a Palestinian state could jeopardise trade negotiations. “Wow! Canada has just announced that it is backing statehood for Palestine,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. “That will make it very hard for us to make a Trade Deal with them. Oh’ Canada!!!” With Wednesday’s announcement, Carney positioned Canada alongside France, after President Emmanuel Macron said his country would formally recognise a Palestinian state during the United Nations meeting, the most powerful European nation to announce such a move. Macron’s announcement drew condemnation from Israel, which said the move “rewards terror”, while US President Donald Trump dismissed the decision as pointless. Israel on Wednesday condemned Canada’s plan to recognise a Palestinian state, blasting Carney’s announcement as part of a “distorted campaign of international pressure.” “Recognising a Palestinian state in the absence of accountable government, functioning institutions, or benevolent leadership, rewards and legitimises the monstrous barbarity of Hamas on October 7, 2023,” the Israeli embassy in Ottawa said in a statement. Israel’s foreign ministry said it rejected Carney’s statement. “The change in the position of the Canadian government at this time is a reward for Hamas and harms the efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and a framework for the release of the hostages.” Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas welcomed Canada’s “historic” move during a phone call with Carney, state news reported on Wednesday. Abbas “appreciated Canada’s historic position in recognising the State of Palestine, which will enhance peace, stability, and security in the region,” Wafa, the official Palestinian news agency, said. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Tuesday the UK will also recognise a Palestinian state in September unless Israel meets conditions. Carney said his decision was informed by Canada’s “long-standing” belief in a two-state solution to the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “That possibility of a two-state solution is being eroded before our eyes,” the prime minister told reporters in Ottawa. “We are working ourselves with others, to preserve the possibility of a two-state solution, to not allow the facts on the ground, deaths on the ground, the settlements on the ground, the expropriations on the ground, to get to such an extent that this is not possible,” Carney said. He told reporters the planned move was predicated on the Palestinian Authority’s commitment to reforms, including commitments to reform its governance and to hold general elections in 2026 in which Hamas “can play no part”. Carney referenced Israel’s “ongoing failure” to prevent humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza amid its war against Hamas, as well as the expansion of settlements in the occupied West Bank and Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem. “For decades, it was hoped that [a two-state solution] would be achieved as part of a peace process built around a negotiated settlement between the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority,” he said. “Regrettably, this approach is no longer tenable.” A White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: “As the president stated, he would be rewarding Hamas if he recognises a Palestinian state, and he doesn’t think they should be rewarded. So he is not going to do that. President Trump’s focus is on getting people fed [in Gaza].” The official did not respond to a question on whether the US was given advance notice of Carney’s announcement. Though recognition of a Palestinian state is largely seen as a symbolic move, Gazan man Saed al-Akhras said he hoped it marked a “real shift in how Western countries view the Palestinian cause”. “Enough! Palestinians have lived for more than 70 years under killing, destruction, and occupation, while the world watches in silence,” he said. Families of Israeli hostages still held in Gaza appealed for no recognition of a Palestinian state to come before their loved ones were returned. “Such recognition is not a step toward peace, but rather a clear violation of international law and a dangerous moral and political failure that legitimises horrific war crimes,” the Hostages Family Forum said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday said Britain’s decision “rewards Hamas’ monstrous terrorism”. Israel made similar comments last week after France’s announcement. Netanyahu said this month he wanted peace with Palestinians but described any future independent state as a potential platform to destroy Israel, so control of security must remain with Israel. Meanwhile, the Gaza health ministry reported seven more hunger-related deaths on Wednesday, including a two-year-old girl with an existing health condition. The Hamas-run government media office in Gaza said the Israeli military killed at least 50 people within three hours on Wednesday as they tried to get food from UN aid trucks coming into northern Gaza. Additional reporting by Reuters

Canada ‘intends’ to recognise Palestinian state at UN General Assembly, says PM Carney

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}In a dramatic policy shift, Carney positioned Canada alongside France after Macron said his country would recognise a Palestinian state

In a dramatic policy shift, Carney positioned Canada alongside France after Macron said his country would recognise a Palestinian state