Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on September 2, 2025
3 min readLast updated: January 22, 2026
Western recognition of a Palestinian state could accelerate the two-state solution, according to the Palestinian envoy in London. This move aims to pressure Israel amid ongoing tensions.
By Kate Holton and Ben Makori
LONDON (Reuters) -The recognition of a Palestinian state by leading Western nations will trigger a sprint towards a two-state solution, the head of the Palestinian mission in London said on Tuesday.
Britain, France, Canada, Australia and Belgium have all said they will recognise a Palestinian state at the United Nations General Assembly later this month, although London could halt the process if Israel eased the humanitarian crisis in war-shattered Gaza and committed to a long-term peace process.
The moves are designed to put pressure on Israel to end its assault on Gaza and curtail the building of new Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, but some question whether recognition is merely symbolic.
"I think it will be the starting gun for what we hope to be a sprint, not even a march, towards implementing the two-state solution, and we are hoping for an active, effective, meaningful role by the United Kingdom," Husam Zomlot, the head of the Palestinian Mission in London, told Reuters.
Israel, facing a global outcry over its conduct in the Gaza war, has reacted angrily to recognition gestures, saying they would reward Hamas. The Palestinian militant group's gunmen attacked southern Israeli communities near the border on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mainly civilians, and taking 251 hostages into Gaza, according to Israeli figures.
A two-state solution is the idea that the two sides could co-exist in peace alongside each other - a Palestinian state on territory Israel captured in a 1967 war, with the Gaza Strip and West Bank linked by a corridor through Israel.
But the proposal has become less viable over time, as Israel has accelerated the building of Jewish settlements in occupied territory, while the two sides stick to uncompromising positions on core issues including borders, the fate of Palestinian refugees, and the status of Jerusalem.
Zomlot said the move by Britain was significant due to its role in endorsing a "national home for the Jewish people in Palestine" in 1917. He said it was not too late to achieve a two-state solution, and that he hoped the momentum being built at the U.N. would lead Israel to dismantle its settlements.
"Once we create sufficient pressure - meaningful pressure - I assure you, it is absolutely possible," he said.
The United Nations' highest court said in 2024 Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories and its settlements there are illegal and should be withdrawn as soon as possible.
Israel's right-wing government rules out a Palestinian state and says the territories where settlements have expanded are not occupied in legal terms because they are on disputed lands. It cites biblical and historical ties to those lands.
(Reporting by Kate Holton; additional reporting by Muvija M; editing by Mark Heinrich)
A two-state solution refers to the proposal of establishing two separate states for Israelis and Palestinians, aiming for peaceful coexistence.
International recognition of a state is the acknowledgment by other countries or international organizations that a particular entity meets the criteria of statehood.
Jewish settlements are communities established by Israel in territories it occupied during the 1967 war, which are considered illegal under international law.
The United Nations plays a crucial role in facilitating discussions and resolutions regarding state recognition and international relations among member states.
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