WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden thinks the recognition of the Palestinian state should be achieved through talks and not through unilateral actions, said the White House on Wednesday.
The statement comes soon after Ireland, Spain, and Norway announced their decision to recognize a Palestinian state this month.
US’s reaction shows its disappointment over the announcement of the three European nations to proceed with unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan at a regular news briefing said each nation could make its own decision on recognition of a Palestinian state, but the US thinks direct negotiations by the parties is the best method.
Sullivan added President Biden believes that a two-state solution that ensures the security of Israel security but also a future of security and dignity for the Palestinian people is the best way to bring long-term stability and security for everyone in the region.
“President Biden … has been equally emphatic on the record that that two-state solution should be brought about through direct negotiations through the parties, not for unilateral recognition,” he said.
War in Gaza
Decades of US efforts to achieve a two-state solution have failed with Israel living alongside a Palestinian state surrounding the West Bank, which is ruled by the Palestinian Authority (PA), and Gaza, ruled by Hamas since it captured the coastal strip from the PA in a brief 2007 civil war.
Israel started an offensive in Gaza on October 7, killing more than 35,000 Palestinians mostly women and children.
Israel is now attacking Rafah in southern Gaza, saying it wants to eliminate Hamas. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have fled Rafah since the start of the attack, and the main routes for aid into Gaza have been blocked.
Sullivan said he was briefed on Israeli plans to reduce civilian harm in Rafah during a weekend visit to the region.
He added aid was flowing in Gaza from a pier, and that it was wrong for Israel to withhold funds from the West Bank.
