Spain to host meeting of European and Muslim countries on Palestinian statehood

The foreign ministers of several Muslim and European countries will meet in Madrid on Friday to discuss how to implement a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Spanish and Norwegian governments said.

Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares will host the meeting, which will be attended by his European counterparts, European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, and members of the Arab-Islamic Contact Group for Gaza.

The two-state solution set out in the 1991 Madrid Conference and the 1993-95 Oslo Accords has long been seen by the international community as the best way to settle the decades-long conflict, but the peace process has been moribund for years.

However, the search for a peaceful solution has been given new urgency by the 11-month-long war in the Gaza Strip between Israel and the Palestinian militant groups Hamas - the bloodiest episode yet in the overall conflict - as well as escalating violence in the occupied West Bank.

On May 28, Spain, Norway and Ireland formally recognized a unified Palestinian state ruled by the Palestinian Authority comprising the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, with East Jerusalem as its capital. With them, 146 of the 193 member states of the United Nations now recognize Palestinian statehood.


Reuters