Spain, Ireland, Norway formalize recognition of Palestine: “We will respond to Israel’s provocations”

Brussels – As of today (May 28), the UN member countries officially recognising the Palestinian state become 145—more than three-quarters out of 193. Spain, Ireland, and Norway formalised the decision announced last May 22, and Madrid promises that a coordinated response will come with Dublin and Oslo to the “despicable provocations and lies” spread by Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz to discredit the three governments.

In the morning, Pedro Sanchez opened the dances and, from the Moncloa Palace, announced “the historic decision,” made with “a single goal: to help Israelis and Palestinians achieve peace.” For the Spanish socialist premier, the recognition of the State of Palestine “is not only a matter of historical justice for the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people” but “the only way to move toward the only possible solution to achieve a peaceful future: that of a Palestinian state living side by side with the State of Israel in peace and security.”

A few hours later came the announcements from Oslo and Dublin. “Norway has been one of the most fervent defenders of a Palestinian state for more than 30 years,” said Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide, denouncing Israel’s lack of “constructive engagement” with the two-state solution. “The day Norway officially recognises Palestine as a state is a special day for Norway-Palestinian relations,” he continued. At the same time, the cabinet of the Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris formalised the recognition of Palestine as a sovereign and independent state and announced that it would appoint an ambassador to Ramallah.

The goal of this decision is “to keep hope alive,” Harris said, “to believe that a two-state solution is the only way for Israel and Palestine to live side by side in peace and security. The head of Ireland’s centrist government then called on his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu to “listen to the world and end the humanitarian catastrophe” underway in Gaza. In a statement, Deputy Prime Minister Micheal Martin promised, “The recognition of Palestine is not the end of a process; it is the beginning.”

All this while, from his X account, Tel Aviv’s foreign minister, Israel Katz, kept shooting his mouth off at the three countries that Israel says “decided to reward Hamas.” The main target is Madrid and the Spanish Vice-Premier Yolanda Diaz, who a few days ago had recited the pro-Palestinian slogan “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” For Katz, the Sumar leader is like Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar because she calls for “the elimination of Israel and the creation of a Palestinian Islamic terrorist state from the river to the sea.” He continues: “Prime Minister Sanchez, if you do not fire your deputy and announce the recognition of a Palestinian state, you are complicit in inciting Jewish genocide and war crimes.”

To the Israeli accusations, which EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell called “absolutely unjustified and extreme verbal aggression,” Spain’s Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares gave an initial response. “I spoke with my Irish and Norwegian colleagues, who are receiving infamous attacks and fake news” from Katz,” his Spanish counterpart said, “we decided to give a coordinated response. A response that is, however, “calm and firm” and that will come “at the appropriate time when we decide.” Albares finally accused Katz of using these “provocations” to deflect attention from what is happening in Gaza.

UN members recognising the Palestinian state may soon become 146: the Slovenian government will consider the possibility of forwarding the issue of recognition to the parliament as early as next Thursday, which could then proceed to a vote by June 13. “In the meantime, we will continue to coordinate with a group of like-minded countries to create maximum pressure for an immediate ceasefire and the release of hostages” in Gaza, said the head of the government Robert Golob. Slovenia would not only be the 146th UN member country to recognise Palestine: Ljubljana is a member—until the end of 2025—of the non-permanent members of the UN Security Council.