US warns other countries against recognising Palestinian state

QUITO: The United States has told other counties that recognition of a Palestinian state will cause more problems, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday.

“We told all these countries, we told them all, we said if you guys do this recognition stuff it’s all fake, it’s not even real, if you do it you’re going to create problems,” Rubio said from Quito, where he met with President Daniel Noboa and his Ecuadorean counterpart.

“There’s going to be a response, it’s going to make it harder to get a ceasefire and it may even trigger theses sorts of actions that you’ve seen, or at least these attempts at these actions,” Rubio said.

Rubio added he would not opine on Israeli discussion of annexation of the West Bank but that it was not final.

Meanwhile, Rubio just echoed what his Israeli counter Gideon Saar said earlier in the day.

Saar urged France to reconsider its plan to recognise a Palestinian state during a call with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot.

Read more: ‘No alternative’ to two-state solution: France

According to Israel’s foreign ministry, Saar also said there was “no room” for a visit by French President Emmanuel Macron as long as Paris “persists in its initiative and efforts that harm Israel’s interests.”

FRANCE AND SAUDI ARABIA THIN OTHERWISE

The comments are completely opposite to what Saudi Arabia — a key US ally — thinks as it is ready to co-chair an international conference on the two-state solution later this month.

On Tuesday, French President Emmanuel Macron discussed the issue with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and issued a strong statement on social media.

Read more: No annexation attempt will derail Two-State Solution push: Macron

“No offensive, annexation attempt, or forced displacement of populations will derail the momentum we have created with the [Saudi] Crown Prince — momentum that many partners have already joined,” Macron said.

Although a NATO member and close US ally, France has a history of challenging the US policies and actions.

On the other hand, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) — comprising the wealthy Gulf States — on Wednesday condemned the planned annexation of parts of occupied West Bank, as Israel is trying to sabotage the conference on the two-state solution.

Read more: GGC condemns planned annexation of occupied West Bank

Also on Wednesday, Israel’s far-right finance minister said maps were being drawn up for annexing territory in the occupied West Bank.

At a press conference in Jerusalem, Bezalel Smotrich stood before a map that suggested the possible annexation of most of the West Bank with the exception of six large Palestinian cities, including Ramallah and Nablus.

Smotrich said he wanted “maximum territory and minimum (Palestinian) population” to be brought under Israeli sovereignty, urging Netanyahu to accept his plan that is being drawn up by a department under Smotrich’s supervision in the defence ministry.