London, Yiannis Haniotakis

A British Prime Minister Kir Starmer had a marathon of diplomatic contacts before and after official communication The historical shift of British foreign policy in favor of the recognition of the Palestinian state unless Israel takes a number of immediate actions such as a ceasefire agreement.

On Tuesday afternoon just before the cabinet, Starmer talked to his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu. According to Downing Street, the British prime minister reiterated Britain’s unequivocal condemnation of “Hamas’s heinous terrorist acts on October 7, 2023” and Israel’s right to self -defense.

At the same time, however, he described the situation in Gaza “unbearable” and pressed Netanyahu to “take immediate action to remove all restrictions on access to help” in order to reach seamless food and water to the affected.

In this context, Starmer informed the Israeli prime minister about his intention to convene the cabinet to discuss the next steps, including “examining the next steps to recognize Palestine”.

A telephone contact with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. According to the announcement, the two condemned the “horrific suffering of Gaza” and agreed to the urgent need for a ceasefire and immediate and unlimited help.

Abbas welcomed Starmer’s commitment to recognize the Palestinian state before the UN General Assembly in September, unless Israel changes course. They agreed that Hamas should release all hostages, disarmament and accept that it would not play any role in Gaza’s governance.

The British prime minister also talked with his Canadian counterpart, Mark Carney, in which he explained the decision to recognize the Palestinian state. The two leaders agreed that help should urgently be provided to Gaza in significant quantities and pledged to work together for practical solutions “to relieve the devastating humanitarian situation”. Agreed to remain in close contact.

In the meantime, it is interesting by Donald Trump’s statement, who revealed to reporters in Air Force One that during his meeting with Kir Starmer, they did not discuss Britain’s plan to recognize Palestine. Trump characteristically said the issue “was never discussed”, but that they talked about … wind turbines.