Spain to recognise State of Palestine by July

Spain will recognise Palestinian statehood by July, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has told journalists during a Middle East tour, Reuters has reported.

According to state news agency EFE and newspapers El Pais and La Vanguardia, Sanchez made his informal remarks to the travelling press corps late on Monday in Amman on the first day of visits to Jordan, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. The Spanish prime minister was quoted as saying that he expected events to unfold in the [Israel-Palestine] conflict ahead of the European Parliament elections in early June and highlighted ongoing debates at the UN.

While expecting Spain to extend recognition to the Palestinians by July, Sanchez added that he believed there would soon be a “critical mass” within the EU to push several member states to adopt the same position, said EFE.

At a European Council meeting on 22 March, Sanchez said that he had agreed with the leaders of Ireland, Malta and Slovenia to “take the first steps” towards recognising statehood declared by Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip. At the time, he said that he expected the recognition to happen during the current four-year legislature that began last year.

READ: Israel warns 4 European countries against Palestinian statehood recognition