The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, acknowledged on Monday 9 December that the recognition of the State of Palestine was one of the issues leading to a split between Member States.
Before the press, at the end of the Foreign Affairs Council, he recalled that the recognition of a state was not an EU competence, but a competence of the Member States. The High Representative stated that the EU continues to support a two-state solution.
In a letter to Mr Borrell, Luxembourg’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Jean Asselborn, called for a debate at European level on the recognition of the Palestinian State.
However, a diplomatic source was cautious about this recognition. She wondered to what extent such an act could improve the conditions for discussions on the peace process between Palestinians and Israelis. “I am not sure that this will provide more favourable conditions”, she explained, adding that the role of the international community was to create conditions for confidence-building measures, which are currently lacking.
Ministers will discuss the Middle East issue and the peace process more broadly in January, Borrell said, calling the period “difficult”. (Camille-Cerise Gessant and Agathe Cherki)