The UK will recognise a Palestinian state by September unless Israel agrees to a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip by then, Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Tuesday after an emergency cabinet meeting in London.
“I have always said that we will recognise a Palestinian state as a contribution to a proper peace process at the moment of maximum impact for the two-state solution,” Starmer said.
“With that solution now under threat, this is the moment to act,” he added.
“Ultimately, the only way to bring this humanitarian crisis to an end is through a long-term settlement,” he said.
Starmer said any ceasefire in Gaza must be “sustainable” and pave the way for negotiations on a two-state solution. The UK will make the announcement at the UN General Assembly in September.
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The move comes as Gaza descends into famine and more human rights groups, including two prominent Israeli ones this week, say Israel’s war on Gaza is a genocide.
Starmer is under increasing pressure to hold Israel accountable for atrocities in Gaza.
In July, nearly 60 British MPs and peers called for a full embargo on arms exports to Israel. He has faced mounting criticism in his own Labour Party.
The New York Times reported on Tuesday that Starmer was more actively weighing the recognition of a Palestinian state.
France said last week that it will recognise a Palestinian state without conditions. Starmer’s stance is likely to be met with criticism from members of his Labour Party for not going further.
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Starmer met on Monday with US President Donald Trump, who experts say he has tried not to antagonise over Gaza. They spoke about his plan to recognise a Palestinian state on Monday in Aberdeen, Scotland.
Starmer’s decision to threaten recognition appeared to receive a nod of approval from the US.
“I’m not going to take a position. I don’t mind him taking a position,” Trump said on Monday.
Although the State Department has condemned France’s move to recognise a Palestinian state, Trump dismissed it as irrelevant.
Starmer detailed several demands for the Palestinian group Hamas, which is holding Israeli hostages seized in its 7 October 2023 attacks on southern Israel.
Starmer also called on Hamas to release the remaining captives held in the Gaza Strip and disarm. “They (Hamas) will play no part in the government of Gaza,” he said.
The UK leader added that London “will make an assessment in September” of whether Israel has met its conditions to prevent recognition of a Palestinian state.
