Denmark, Netherlands ready to recognize Palestine under certain conditions

​​​​​​​ISTANBUL

Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen and Dutch Foreign Minister David van Weel said Monday that their countries will recognize the State of Palestine under certain conditions.

Rasmussen and van Weel addressed a High-Level International Conference on Finding a Solution to the Palestinian Issue and Implementing the Two-State Solution, held under the auspices of the UN, led by France and Saudi Arabia.

Van Weel underlined the need to end the “horrific war” in the Gaza Strip and reverse the troubling trajectory in the occupied West Bank.

He noted that the Netherlands has taken steps nationally and at the European level to try to shift Israel’s course of action.

Van Weel said a legitimate and democratic Palestinian authority with full control over its territories is vital for the establishment of a viable Palestinian state.

He said Hamas should not have any role in the future Palestinian administration, and demanded the release of hostages and the disarmament of the resistance group, stressing that any potential solution must "guarantee Israel's security."

“The Netherlands will recognize the State of Palestine at a later stage, as part of the political process that needs to begin now,” said van Weel.

Stating that the war in Gaza has led to a “humanitarian catastrophe in an unbearable scale, and that “Tel Aviv is expanding its military operations,” Rasmussen urged Tel Aviv to end it immediately and change its course.

He said a two-state solution faces growing challenges due to Israel's expansion of illegal settlements and threats to annex Gaza and the West Bank.

“The key to recognition of the State of Palestine should no longer lie in the hands of the Israeli government,” he said. “The key” must be in Palestinians’ hands.

“Denmark is ready to recognize Palestine as a state once certain conditions are met: when Israeli hostages are released, when Hamas is disarmed and no longer plays a role in Gaza,” he said.

When more progress is made on the Palestinian Authority’s reform agenda, and when there are guarantees that the future Palestinian state will be demilitarized, Denmark will recognize the State of Palestine, he added.