Brussels, 26/11/2014 (Agence Europe) - During a tense debate in the European Parliament's plenary session on Wednesday 26 November, MEPs were divided as to the European Parliament's recognition of the state of Palestine.
On behalf of the S&D Group, Richard Howitt from the UK stated that “international recognition is fundamental for preserving hope in the Palestinian population”. Fernando Maura Barandiaran (ALDE, Spain) believed that the European Parliament should be “at the forefront of the decisions”. “Sweden's courageous announcement must be a new wave. We must support this movement”, he said. In the view of Fabio Castaldo (EFDD, Italy), the Palestinian state should see the light of day because “we owe it to the Palestinians”. He believed that it was a political, ethical and historical necessity.
“Recognition would be a clear message - the EU is against the Israeli occupation and is committed to two states in their full right”, said Martina Anderson (GUE, UK). Tamas Meszerics (Greens/EFA, Hungary) believed that recognition of the Palestinian state would enable “a two state solution to be preserved, and moderation for the two parties to be encouraged”. “We are paralysing the EU if we don't vote on recognition of the Palestinian state immediately”, he warned.
The EPP and ECR Groups, for their part, believe that this is not the time to recognise the state of Palestine. “A two state solution is needed (…) This will only be able to come about through reciprocal recognition. It is not possible to recognise one and not the other”, said Elmar Brok (EPP, Germany). “Recognition of Palestine can only be the fruit of a process of negotiation”, added Cristian Preda (EPP, Romania). Charles Tannock from the UK spoke on behalf of the ECR Group, wondering if the Parliament's motion for the “unilateral recognition of a state” was not “premature”. “The conditions for peace will not be met by the unilateral recognition of an independent, embryonic state. This risks more intransigence from the Israeli state. It risks not convincing Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Palestine's president, Mahmoud Abbas, to meet around the table again, but it risks radicalising their position”, he said.
High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini reiterated that the recognition of the state of Palestine was a national issue. However, “while technically [the recognition] does not concern me, I am firmly convinced that a solution is needed”, she said. Mogherini wanted a more important role for the EU in settling the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “It's only if we have a united and common message on behalf of the EU that we will be able to make our voice heard effectively in the region”, she said (our translation throughout).
The vote on the resolution, which was initially planned for 27 November, has been postponed until the Parliament's plenary session in December. (CG)