Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas said on Saturday that relations between Israel and the P.A. have hit a “dead end,” and urged Europe to recognize a Palestinian state.
Speaking during a meeting in Ramallah with Spanish diplomat and U.N. High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations Miguel Moratinos, Abbas urged Europe to formally recognize a State of Palestine in the West Bank and parts of Jerusalem, the Palestinian Wafa news agency reported.
Such recognition was necessary, said Abbas, to “end the occupation and create an independent state of Palestine with eastern Jerusalem as its capital and within the pre-1967 borders.”
The meeting came following the Nov. 18 announcement by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that the United States no longer views Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria as illegal, a move the European Union subsequently denounced.
“Calling the establishment of civilian settlements inconsistent with international law has not advanced the cause of peace,” said Pompeo. “The hard truth is that there will never be a judicial resolution to the conflict, and arguments about who is right and who is wrong as a matter of international law will not bring peace.”