Belgium is set to recognize Palestine as a state at the end of this month during the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). The announcement was made on Tuesday in a post on social media platform X by Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot.
Prévot, who also serves as the country’s Deputy Prime Minister, wrote in his X post,“Belgium will recognize Palestine at the UN session! And strict sanctions will be imposed against the Israeli government.”
He further stated that Belgium will impose 12 sanctions against Israel. These include banning imports from illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and reviewing government procurement policies with Israeli companies.
Prévot, a member of Belgium’s centrist Les Engagés party, said Belgium is making this commitment in light of the humanitarian catastrophe in Palestine, particularly in Gaza. He added that this recognition will be formally enforced only after the release of the last prisoner from Gaza and the assurance that Hamas will play no role in governing Palestine.
The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomed Belgium’s announcement and urged other countries to take similar measures. Belgium said its recognition aims to halt genocide, displacement, starvation, and land grabs in Gaza, while opening a genuine political path toward resolving the conflict.
In a statement, Belgium’s Foreign Ministry said that recognizing Palestine is “in line with international law and United Nations resolutions, supports a two-state solution, and contributes to achieving peace.”
The Israeli government has not yet commented on the matter. However, opposition party Yisrael Beiteinu’s leader Avigdor Lieberman said Belgium’s decision was the result of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s political failures.
“Due to Netanyahu’s political incompetence, a Palestinian state is being established before our very eyes,” Lieberman wrote on X. He added that Belgium’s recognition of Palestine and the imposition of sanctions are yet another direct result of Netanyahu’s failures.
Earlier, at the end of July, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that France would recognize Palestine when world leaders meet at the UNGA. While Belgium’s recognition may appear largely symbolic, it has created significant momentum across Europe, reported Al Jazeera’s Hashem Ahelbarra from Brussels.
“This means that every European country saying ‘we recognize Palestine’ will recognize the sovereignty of an independent Palestinian state along the 1967 borders and establish full diplomatic relations,” he explained. According to those borders, the Palestinian state would include the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem.
Hashem further noted that recognition by more European states would increase pressure on Luxembourg and Italy. On September 22, France and Saudi Arabia are scheduled to jointly host a meeting at the UNGA regarding recognition of Palestine as a state. Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom are also planning conditional recognition of Palestine later this month.
