Australia to Affirm Palestinian Statehood, According to Albanese
In a significant diplomatic development, Australia has announced its decision to recognize the State of Palestine at the United Nations in September 2025. This move follows similar decisions by France and other countries, marking a growing momentum in the international community's position on the recognition of Palestine.
France, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, will unconditionally recognize Palestine at the UN in September 2025, framing it as a contribution to peace and a call to respect Palestinians' right to self-determination. The United Kingdom, on the other hand, intends to recognize Palestine conditionally in September 2025, subject to Israel taking concrete steps such as agreeing to a ceasefire in Gaza, ending West Bank annexation plans, and committing to a two-state solution. Canada's recognition will also be conditional, dependent on Palestinian Authority elections that exclude Hamas and the demilitarization of a Palestinian state. San Marino has decided to recognize Palestine by the end of 2025 as a principled stance based on international law and the right to self-determination.
Notably, the United States remains opposed to recognizing Palestine at the UN without a negotiated peace deal, continuing to insist that recognition should be part of a broader peace agreement.
With these moves, over 145 UN member states, including a majority of the Global South and many post-colonial nations, have already recognized Palestine prior to these 2025 developments. The new recognitions by countries like France, Australia, the UK, and Canada represent significant diplomatic developments in Western and developed countries amid ongoing conflict and stalled peace processes.
Australia's decision aligns with countries like France, Canada, and the UK, who have recently pledged recognition. The move follows large-scale protests in Australia, including hundreds of thousands marching across the Sydney Harbour Bridge. It is worth noting that this decision was made 77 years after Australia first backed a two-state solution at the United Nations.
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[1] BBC News. (2025). Australia to recognise Palestine at UN in September. [online] Available at: www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-58345767
[2] The Guardian. (2025). France to recognise Palestine at UN in September, Macron confirms. [online] Available at: www.theguardian.com/world/2025/aug/01/france-to-recognise-palestine-at-un-in-september-macron-confirms
[3] Al Jazeera. (2025). US opposes UN recognition of Palestine without peace deal. [online] Available at: www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/8/1/us-opposes-un-recognition-of-palestine-without-peace-deal
[4] The Telegraph. (2025). UK to conditionally recognise Palestine at UN in September. [online] Available at: www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/08/01/uk-conditionally-recognise-palestine-un-september
[5] CBC News. (2025). San Marino to recognize Palestine, joining growing number of nations. [online] Available at: www.cbc.ca/news/world/san-marino-palestine-recognition-1.5745448
In alignment with France, Canada, and the UK, Australia's recognition of Palestine at the UN in September 2025 is part of a growing trend among Western and developed countries, as a significant number of UN member states, including post-colonial nations, have already recognized Palestine prior to these developments.
The new recognitions by countries like France, Australia, the UK, and Canada are gathering attention in the realm of general news and politics, especially given the ongoing conflict and stalled peace processes.