Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot says his country will review public procurement policies with Israeli companies
Belgium has announced it will recognise a Palestinian state and impose slew of “firm sanctions” against Israel.
Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot said in a post on X that his country would join France and Saudi Arabia’s joint initiative to recognise a Palestinian state at the United Nations General Assembly, which will be held in New York on 9 September.
Prevot also said that his country will implement“12 firm sanctions”, including a ban on the import of products from illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and “a review of public procurement policies with Israeli companies”.
Prevot hailed the move as “a strong political and diplomatic gesture to preserve the chance of a two state solution”.
He added that it comes “in light of the humanitarian tragedy unfolding in Palestine, particularly in Gaza, and in response to the violence perpetrated by Israel in violation of international law”.
“This is not about sanctioning the Israeli people but about ensuring that their government respects international and humanitarian law and taking action to try to change the situation on the ground,” he said.
Prevot also emphasised that recognising a Palestinian state would be contingent on the release of all Israeli captives held in Gaza, and the guarantee that “Hamas no longer has any role in managing Palestine”.
The move was hailed by the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who said it considered the decision “to be in line with international law and United Nations resolutions, and protective of the two-state solution and supportive of achieving peace”.
The ministry called on other countries to follow suit in order to “intensify practical efforts to stop the crimes of genocide, displacement, starvation, and annexation, and to open a real political path to resolve the conflict”.
Belgium is the latest country to announce its recognition of Palestinian statehood as international pressure on Israel mounts over its escalating genocide in Gaza.
Since France announced in July its decision to recognise a Palestinian state at September’s UN General Meeting, a growing number of countries are joining calls for international recognition, including the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Malta and Portugal.
The Israeli government is yet to issue an official statement, but the leader of Israel’s opposition Yisrael Beiteinu party, Avigdor Lieberman, attributed growing western recognition of Palestinian statehood to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “inability to manage the political arena”.
He said in a post on X that Belgium’s announcement is “another direct result of his political failure”.
