Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar called President Macron’s announcement a “reward for terrorism” that distances peace.
Israel sharply criticized a French intention announced Wednesday to recognize a “State of Palestine” in the near future.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar reacted to French President Emmanuel Macron’s revelation, during an interview on France Channel 5. “We must move towards recognition, and therefore, in the coming months, we will do so,” Macron said.
In response, Sa’ar stated on X, “Unilateral recognition of an imaginary Palestinian state by any country, in the reality known to us all, would be nothing but a reward for terrorism and a strengthening of Hamas.”
Sa’ar also scoffed at Macron’s claim that such a move would help protect the Middle East from danger, such as Iran. “Things like this not only do not bring peace, security and stability closer in our region, but on the contrary, they will push them further away,” the Israeli minister wrote.
Macron pointed to June as the likely target date, when France and Saudi Arabia co-host a UN conference in New York with the ambitious goal of solving the Middle East conflict by creating a Palestinian state alongside Israel.
“I won’t do it for unity or in order to please someone,” Macron said. “I’ll do it because I think that at some point, it would be fair. And also because I want to take part in a collective dynamic, one that allows everyone who defends ‘Palestine’ to also recognize Israel.”
The Palestinian Authority (PA) was delighted with the French statement.
European powerhouses Germany and England, however, backed Israel’s position on the issue, saying recognition of a Palestinian state could come only as part of a bilateral peace process.