Portugal has joined a growing number of countries, including Australia, Canada, France, and the United Kingdom, in plans to recognize a Palestinian state. The Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced this decision on Friday, stating that the official declaration of recognition will take place on Sunday, the day before a high-level conference on Palestinian statehood at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). This move puts an end to nearly 15 years of debate in the Western European country’s parliament.
The decision was made after Portugal’s Prime Minister, Luis Montenegro, consulted with the president and parliament. Portugal is among several countries, including France and the UK, that plan to recognize Palestinian statehood next week.
According to Portugal’s Correio da Manha newspaper, this decision marks the culmination of years of discussion, following a proposal first introduced by the Left Bloc political party in 2011. Portugal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed this plan on its website, stating that it will take place before next week’s High-Level Conference at the UNGA.
Portugal’s announcement comes just days after a significant UN inquiry found that Israel’s war on Gaza could amount to a genocide. At least 65,141 people have been killed and 165,925 wounded since Israel’s onslaught began in October 2023, with many thousands more buried under the rubble.
Additionally, earlier this week, Luxembourg’s Prime Minister Luc Frieden and Foreign Minister Xavier Bettel announced their country’s intention to recognize Palestinian statehood at the UNGA. Bettel also introduced the possibility of further measures, which may include sanctions and an arms embargo against Israel, in response to the ongoing conflict.
The global reaction to this announcement has been mixed. The United States and Israel have criticized the move, with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio describing France’s similar decision to recognize Palestine as a “reckless decision.” Meanwhile, Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory, has asked countries to consider more severe measures to end Israel’s actions in Gaza.
Under the UN’s 1947 partition plan, the General Assembly suggested that 45 percent of the land should be allocated to an Arab state, at a time when there were only 57 member states, and many countries were still under colonial rule.
Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/9/20/portugal-to-recognise-a-palestinian-state?traffic_source=rss
