Spain, Ireland and Norway said on Wednesday they would move forward with recognizing a Palestinian state on May 28, a move that comes amid global outrage over the civilian death toll and humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip following Israel’s offensive.

The simultaneous decisions of both its two countries European Union as well as Norwaymay set the stage for recognition of a Palestinian state by other EU countries as well, a move that could lead to further steps within the United Nations, increasing Israel’s isolation.

Currently, seven members of the 27-nation European Union have officially recognized a Palestinian state. Five of these are former Eastern bloc countries that announced recognition in 1988, as did Cyprus, which it did before joining the EU. Sweden announced it recognized a Palestinian state in 2014.

The Czech Republic, an EU member, however, points out that the 1988 recognition by the former Czechoslovakia, of which it was then a part, is not valid. Slovakia’s foreign ministry says the two sides reaffirmed their recognition in 1992-93 when Slovakia was becoming independent, and that the Palestinian state has had a fully functioning embassy in Bratislava since 2006.

EU members Malta and Slovenia may follow suit.

About 140 of the roughly 190 countries represented at the UN have already recognized a Palestinian state.

What is the significance of recognizing a Palestinian state?

The UN plan in 1947 called for the creation of a Jewish state alongside a Palestinian state, but the Palestinians and the wider Arab world rejected it because it gave them less than half the territory, even though Palestinians made up two-thirds of the population.

The Arab-Israeli war the following year resulted in Israel gaining even more territory, Jordan taking control of the West Bank and East Jerusalem while control of Gaza passed to Egypt.

In the 1967 war, Israel occupied all three areas to follow decades of peace talks that all failed.
The United States, Britain and other Western countries have supported the idea of ​​an independent Palestinian state alongside the state of Israel as a solution, insisting, however, that the Palestinian state should be the result of a negotiated settlement. No substantive negotiations have taken place since 2009.

Although EU countries and Norway will not recognize an existing state, but the possibility of a future one, the symbolism is expected to help bolster the Palestinians’ international standing while putting more pressure on Israel to start negotiations to end the war.

The move also puts extra emphasis on the Middle East issue ahead of the June 6-9 European Parliament elections.

The timing

Diplomatic pressure on Israel has increased as the war with Hamas enters its eighth month. The UN General Assembly voted by a wide margin on May 11 to grant new “rights and privileges” to Palestine in a sign of growing international support for full membership. The Palestinian Authority currently has observer status.

The leaders of Spain, Ireland, Malta and Slovenia said in March they were considering recognizing a Palestinian state as a “positive contribution” to ending the war.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Wednesday, “This recognition is not against anyone, it is not against the Israeli people,” he said. “It is an act of peace, justice and moral consistency.”

Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide told The Associated Press that while the country has supported the establishment of a Palestinian state for decades, recognition is “a card you can play once.” “We thought recognition would come at the end of a process,” he said. “We now realize that recognition must come as a pressure, as a reinforcement of a process.”

What are the implications of recognition

While dozens of countries have recognized a Palestinian state, none of the major Western powers have, so it’s unclear what the three countries’ move will add.

Even so, the recognition is a boon for the Palestinians, who believe it lends international legitimacy to their struggle. Norway said it would upgrade the office of its representative for Palestine to an embassy, ​​but it was unclear what Ireland and Spain would do.

They are unlikely to change immediately. Peace talks have stalled and Israel’s hardline government strongly opposes recognizing a Palestinian state.

What is Israel’s response?

Israel reacted swiftly on Wednesday by recalling its ambassadors to Ireland, Norway and Spain.

The Israeli government has characterized the Palestinian independence talks as “reward” for the October 7 attack by Hamas in southern Israel that killed 1,200 people and kidnapped 250. He rejects any move to legitimize the Palestinians internationally.

Steps like those by the three European countries on Wednesday will harden the Palestinian position and undermine the negotiating process, Israel says, insisting that all issues must be resolved through negotiations.

Israel often reacts to decisions by foreign countries it deems against its interests by recalling ambassadors and punishing Palestinians through measures such as freezing tax transfers to the cash-strapped Palestinian Authority.

Which countries have recognized a Palestinian state?

Some 140 countries have already recognized a Palestinian state, more than two-thirds of the United Nations membership.

Some major powers have indicated that their stance may be shifting in that direction amid the outcry over the fallout from Israel’s war on Gaza, which has killed more than 35,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its numbers.

British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said there could be no recognition of a Palestinian state as long as Hamas remains in Gaza, but that it could happen if Israeli and Palestinian leaders negotiate.

France also rejected a similar move without being opposed to the idea in principle. French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné, in a statement after a closed-door meeting with his Israeli counterpart on Wednesday, said recognizing a Palestinian state should be “useful” to advance a two-state solution, adding that making now it will have no real impact on the pursuit of this goal.