UK, Canada, and Australia Recognize Palestinian State Ahead of Macron’s UN Address, Villepin Criticizes European Inaction on Gaza
NEW YORK – In a coordinated move on the eve of French President Emmanuel Macron’s address to the United Nations, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia formally recognized the State of Palestine. The announcements come amid growing international pressure for a resolution to the ongoing conflict in Gaza and escalating criticism of perceived Western inaction.
Former French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin has sharply criticized France and other European nations for not doing enough to address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. “Emmanuel Macron will have to be accountable, like all European officials,” before “History’s court” for the inaction of French diplomacy in the face of the “disaster” unfolding in the Gaza strip, Villepin warned Sunday.
“Before history,they will have to explain why they did not do everything,why they did not dare to take a certain number of steps when we know the extent of the disaster which takes place in Gaza,” he stated in an interview with Radio J. He suggested accountability could extend to international justice,but primarily believes judgment will come from “the history court.”
Villepin, while approving of Macron’s initiative to recognize the Palestinian state - stating, “We recognize, we French, a principle of law and a principle of justice. Some say that it is purely symbolic. No,it’s not purely symbolic” - expressed deep concern that Macron’s upcoming speech at the UN will be overshadowed by what he hasn’t done.
“Strongly fear that in the United Nations Tribune, tomorrow, it is not so much what the President of the republic will say that will be retained,” but rather what he “has not done throughout the last months, just like Europeans, that is to say put all its weight to end the humanitarian tragedy in Gaza,” Villepin deplored. He further asserted, “We are witnessing an ethnic cleaning today, crimes committed daily by this government [Israeli] and France does not do everything it should.”
The recognition by the UK, Canada, and Australia follows similar moves by several other nations and reflects a shifting international consensus on the Palestinian question. The timing, coinciding with Macron’s UN address, is widely seen as a deliberate attempt to increase pressure on France and other European powers to adopt a more assertive stance on the conflict.
