In spite of opposition, Spain acknowledges Palestine as a nation.
In Israel, there's been a lot of backlash against Spain's decision to recognize a Palestinian state, but Pedro Sánchez has now detailed how his left-wing government views this new nation. At Palacio de la Moncloa, the government headquarters, Sánchez stated, "This is a significant move towards helping both Israelis and Palestinians achieve peace." Despite the controversy surrounding the borders of a potential Palestinian state, Sánchez believes Spain should stay out of defining other countries' borders. Instead, Spain's position aligns with UN Security Council resolutions and EU tradition, accepting the 1967 borders.
Sánchez envisions a Palestinian state first and foremost as a viable one, connecting the West Bank and Gaza Strip through a corridor, with East Jerusalem as the capital under the Palestinian Authority's legitimate government. He clarified that his government's decision isn't against anyone, especially not Israel, a friendly country that Spain wants to maintain a good relationship with. He also condemned the October 7 terrorist attacks on Israel.
The Spanish government's recognition of a Palestinian state stirred up outrage last week, sparking a diplomatic feud between Madrid and Jerusalem. Katz, the Israeli Foreign Minister, leveled serious accusations at Sánchez, accusing him of playing a role in inciting murder of Jews and committing war crimes via supporting the Palestinian struggle. On Twitter, he wrote, "Chamenei (Iran's religious leader Ayatollah Ali), Sinwar (Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar), and Díaz (Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Yolanda Díaz) are calling for the destruction of Israel and establishing a Palestinian Islamic terrorist state from the river to the sea."
Katz specifically targeted Sánchez, writing further, "If you don't sack your deputy prime minister and retract your recognition of a Palestinian state, you're complicit in inciting murder of Jews and war crimes."
The controversy began when Díaz said in a video, "Palestine will be free from the river to the sea." This statement is controversial because it claims Palestinian sovereignty over the whole region, effectively denying Israel's existence. From an Israeli perspective, it could also be interpreted as a call for Jews' expulsion or murder.
Spain has a long history of criticizing Israel's actions in Gaza and even stopped exporting weapons to Israel shortly after Hamas attacked Israel and the conflict began. The diplomatic tension continued this past Friday, with Israel imposing restrictions on Spanish diplomats' work, preventing them from offering services to Palestinians from the West Bank.
© Elvira Swarbrick (2023) Wordpress Openpub - https://openpub.wordpress.com/
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Source: www.ntv.de
