Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn is working on an initiative to push all member states of the European Union to jointly recognize the state of Palestine, in response to the recent US declaration, which considered settlement in the West Bank not inconsistent with international law.
Aslborn is the foreign minister of one of the smallest European countries, and he enjoys wide influence and influence among the European Union countries, due to his extensive experience, as he was appointed to his position 15 years ago.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Luxembourg sent a message to the European Union Foreign Minister Joseph Burrell and the foreign ministers of the 27 member states, during which he stressed that the Union should advance the two-state solution by creating politically equal conditions between the two parties (Palestinian and Israeli).
In his message, he focused on the necessity of holding a discussion session with the participation of all European Union member states, with the aim of examining the possibility of joint recognition of the State of Palestine.
The timing of the message that the Foreign Minister of Luxembourg initiated prior to the forthcoming monthly meeting of the European Union foreign ministers, stating, "The recognition of the State of Palestine is neither known nor an open mandate, but rather recognition of the right of the Palestinian people to have their own state."
He added that "such a step will not be directed against Israel at all. If we want to resolve the conflict, we must not forget Israel´s security needs, and the justice and dignity that the Palestinians deserve."
On Monday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that Washington had abandoned its position that the settlements "violated international law", in retreat from a position taken by US President Jimmy Carter in 1978.
