Retno Marsudi Hopes More European Countries Follow Suit to Recognize Palestinian State

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi hopes more European countries would follow suit in recognizing Palestine as a sovereign state as some EU member states announced their recognition as of late.

"We hope several other European countries will soon recognize Palestine. Let’s wait, "Retno said in the Working Meeting of the House of Representatives Commission I on Wednesday, June 5, 2024, regarding the current situation in Palestine.

Slovenia currently became the latest EU country to officially recognize Palestine after its parliament reached a majority vote on the notion on Tuesday, June 4, 2024. Slovenia’s recognition followed Spain, Ireland, and Norway, which officially recognized Palestine earlier on  May 28. The recognition was carried out as part of an effort to put pressure on Israel to end its aggression in the Gaza Strip, which had claimed tens of thousands of lives.

"Today's recognition of Palestine as a sovereign and independent state sends hope to the Palestinian people in the West Bank and Gaza," said Prime Minister of Slovenia Robert Golob on X, formerly Twitter.

Slovenia joined the list of 147 countries out of the total 193 members of the UN that have recognized Palestine as a state. 

Indonesia was one of the first countries to recognize the Palestinian state since 1988, along with more than 80 other countries after the first president of the Palestinian National Authority (PA) Yasser Arafat proclaimed Palestine as an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital.

Retno said, "The recognition of European countries will send a strong message that they are in favor of justice and humanity as well as peace, and they take steps forward to accelerate the implementation of the two-state solution." Retno also believes that this is the "most appropriate moment" to implement the solution, amid the barrage of Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip.

Israel’s aggression in the enclave has killed at least 36,550 people and injured 82,959 other people, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. More than half of Gaza's population has become internally displaced, and they are facing starvation amid difficult access to humanitarian assistance.

According to Al Jazeera's calculation based on Israel's official figures, the military campaign was carried out after Hamas attacked South Israel on October 7, 2023, which killed 1,139 people and took more than 250 hostages. Israel has occupied the Palestinian territory, including Gaza and the West Bank since 1967. The two regions were previously under the rule of Jordan.

NABIILA AZZAHRA

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