Macron declares at UN: France recognizes State of Palestine

22 September 2025 , 21:53

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Macron declares at UN: France recognizes State of Palestine

French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday, September 22, acknowledged a Palestinian state, leading a UN summit that already prompted other Western governments to take the landmark step that has angered Israel.

"The time for peace has come, as we are just moments away from no longer being able to seize it," Macron told the summit. "The time has come to free the 48 hostages held by Hamas. The time has come to stop the war, the bombings of Gaza, the massacres, and the displacement."

Australia, Britain, Canada, and Portugal also took the largely symbolic step of recognition on the eve of the summit called by France and Saudi Arabia, putting pressure on Israel as it intensifies its retaliatory war in Gaza that has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of people.

Macron earlier stated he would make the release of hostages taken by Hamas during its October 7, 2023, attack on Israel a precondition for opening a French embassy to the Palestinian state.

Israel has repeatedly cautioned France against recognizing a Palestinian state, with far-right members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government considering annexation of the West Bank to make any state impossible. Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, warned, "We will take action."

"It’s easier to come here and give speeches, take pictures, feel like they are doing something. But they are not promoting peace. They are supporting terrorism," he told reporters.

The United States, Israel’s essential diplomatic and military supporter, had unsuccessfully urged its allies to abandon the recognition plans, with President Donald Trump stating that a state can only come through negotiations.

"Frankly, he believes it’s a reward to Hamas," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said of recognizing a Palestinian state. "So he believes these decisions are just more talk and not enough action from some of our friends and allies," she told reporters in Washington.

Germany, while more critical than Washington of Israel’s actions in Gaza, also diverged from France and Britain and will not recognize a Palestinian state. German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said that "a negotiated two-state solution is the path that can allow Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace, security, and dignity."

James Smith

Editor-in-Chief