Palestine | Norway, Ireland and Spain plan to recognize the state of Palestine – The aim is to put pressure on Israel, says the professor

On Wednesday three European countries announced their intention to recognize a Palestinian state. Norway, Ireland and Spain all announced their recognition of Palestine on the same day, 28 May. He told about it, among other things news agency Reuters.

Prime Minister of Norway Jonas Gahr Støre told the press conference together with the country’s foreign minister Espen Barth Eiden with on Wednesday morning. Støre emphasized that the recognition of Palestine is also in Israel’s interests.

“The goal is to create a Palestinian state that is politically united and based on the Palestinian Authority,” he said at a news conference.

Nearly three quarters of the UN member states have recognized the Palestinian state. For example, Sweden did so in 2014.

A few other European countries have also expressed their willingness to recognize Palestine in recent months. For example, in March, Slovenia and Malta said they were ready to recognize Palestine.

Norwegianthe decisions of Ireland and Spain did not really come as a surprise, says the professor of Middle Eastern studies Hannu Juusola from the University of Helsinki. The countries have expressed throughout the spring that they are ready to recognize Palestine.

“Norway, Ireland and Spain have had a positive attitude towards Palestine for a long time and now the countries have decided to go ahead with recognizing Palestine. Their aim is, above all, to put pressure on Israel to move the peace process forward,” says Juusola.

The joint decision of the three countries to recognize Palestine is not necessarily enough for this. According to Juusola, other European countries should also join the front so that the peace process in the Middle East gets a real boost.

“If Europe or the European Union had a common line in the recognition of Palestine, the end result would be more impressive. Unfortunately, the EU is quite divided on the matter, and it takes a little power from the recognition of Norway, Ireland and Spain.”

However, Juusola emphasizes that the countries’ decisions are by no means unimportant.

“They create pressure for other European countries to join the front. For example, France has announced that nothing actually prevents it from recognizing Palestine. If, on the other hand, a broader united front recognizing the Palestinian state were to emerge in Europe, it could eventually have an impact on the United States as well.”

Juusola would also draw attention to the fact that together with Norway, two Nordic countries have now recognized Palestine. Denmark may soon follow the example of Sweden and Norway.

“Two weeks ago, Denmark flagged in the UN General Assembly in favor of the motion on improving Palestine’s UN status,” Juusola reminds.

According to him, attention will inevitably turn to Finland if Denmark decides to recognize Palestine.

“It would seem strange if Finland does not take a position on the Palestinian situation. However, Finland emphasizes in many other matters that it always follows how the other Nordic countries act or react. However, Finland has had a rather passive tradition when it comes to Middle Eastern politics.”

Israel on Wednesday invited the ambassadors of Norway and Ireland to an interview about the countries’ announcement to recognize Palestine.

The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on the X message service that it had communicated to the ambassadors that it will not remain silent in the face of those who undermine Israel’s sovereignty and endanger its security.

In the message, Israel also warned Spain. An Israeli newspaper Haaretz according to the country’s foreign minister Israel Katz warned that “hasty decisions” by Norway, Ireland and Spain could have “ominous consequences”.