“Several EU countries will recognize the state” –

Several EU countries will recognize the Palestinian state by the end of May. This was stated by the EU’s top foreign policy official, Josep Borrell, on the sidelines of a special meeting of the World Economic Forum in Riyadh. Of the 193 UN member countries, 140 have recognized the State of Palestine. On April 18, the United States vetoed a draft Security Council resolution that would have recognized Palestine as a full member of the United Nations. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Jordan, Ayman Safadi, and the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the European Union discussed efforts for the recognition of the Palestinian nation on the basis of the two-state solution . According to a statement from the Jordanian Foreign Ministry, the parties “also discussed developments in Gaza and efforts to end the war, ensure the protection of civilians and provide humanitarian aid to all parts of the Strip, as well as efforts to reduce the escalation in the region.” Safadi urged the international community «to take effective measures to achieve a two-state solution», praised «Borrell’s positions and efforts to end the aggression, address the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, apply international law and international humanitarian law, and its clear positions for the creation of an independent Palestinian state.”

Borrell declared that the EU will support Ukraine “until Putin decides to stop the war”, which will not happen “soon”, but we will probably have to wait for the elections in the United States to know the future of the conflict. The EU’s top foreign policy official reiterated his commitment to supporting Kiev in the war once morest Moscow, regardless of the budgetary investment required. «We will continue to support the Ukrainian people. Some ask how much money we will spend on the war. We are committed to supporting Ukraine to resist until Putin decides to stop the war, but I don’t think this will happen soon,” he said. In his speech, he recalled that «Putin started the war» and underlined that the Russian president «will wait for the elections in the United States» to consider the future or the possibility of ending the conflict that began just over two years ago. Regarding the extension of the war between Russia and Ukraine, he expressed concern that something similar might happen in the Middle East and referred to the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, another example of «war between two sides for the most part same territory where the only solution is sharing.”