The Palestinian Authority has rejected the Trump plan out of hand and the new EU foreign policy chief, Josep Borell, has said that the plan throws into question “the 1967 border, as agreed by both parties, with a State of Israel and an independent, viable state of Palestine, living side-by-side in peace, security and mutual recognition.” Although there are individual member states that recognize the Palestinian state, the European Union as a whole does not. It has taken the position that the issue of Palestinian statehood should be settled through negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians towards a two-state solution.
Sweden recognized the Palestinian state in 2014 and Malta also has diplomatic relations. Cyprus, which joined the EU in 2004, recognized Palestine in 1988, but it is not a party to the current initiative due to the close ties that it developed with Israel since. In the wake of the initiative, Israel has conveyed messages to the countries sponsoring it that “this is not the time for unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state,” because it would prevent “a possibility of direct negotiations between the sides for a permanent agreement.” Israel is now trying to convince the Europeans to give the American peace initiative a chance. -Full Report
Palestinian Authority PM: Trump's peace plan 'will be buried very soon'
