(VOVWORLD) - French President Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday France could recognize a Palestinian state in June, adding that in turn some countries in the Middle East could recognize the state of Israel.
 France's President Emmanuel Macron speaks in front of humanitarian aid destined to Gaza, at the Egyptian Red Crescent warehouse in Arish, Egypt April 8, 2025. (Photo: Ludovic Marin/Pool via REUTERS) |
"We need to move towards recognition (of a Palestinian state). And so over the next few months, we will. I'm not doing it to please anyone. I'll do it because at some point it will be right," he said during an interview on France 5 television.
"And because I also want to take part in a collective dynamic that should also enable those who defend Palestine to recognize Israel in their turn, something that many of them are not doing."
Even though Palestine has been recognized as a sovereign state by almost 150 countries, most major Western powers have not, including the United States, Britain, France, Germany and Japan.
Among countries that do not recognize Israel are Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Syria and Yemen.