CANBERRA, July 31 — Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said that he discussed the situation in Gaza with his United Kingdom counterpart Keir Starmer and affirmed his government’s strong support for the two-state solution, the Palestine News and Info Agency (WAFA) reported.
In a statement on Thursday, Albanese said that he and Starmer agreed to leverage international momentum to achieve a ceasefire and accelerate the delivery of aid to the Gaza Strip.
On the same day, Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers said that “the government will push for a two-state solution. It is a matter of when, not if, Australia will recognise a Palestinian state… but I do not want to put a timeframe on that.”
On Wednesday, France, Australia, Canada, Finland, New Zealand, Portugal, Andorra, Malta, San Marino, Luxembourg, Iceland, Ireland, Spain, Slovenia, and Norway issued a collective call to recognise the State of Palestine and called on more countries to join this effort.
In a joint statement, the 15 countries called for “an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, and the guarantee of unhindered humanitarian access.”
They added: “We have already recognised, or have expressed, or are expressing our countries’ willingness or positive outlook to recognise the State of Palestine as an essential step towards a two-state solution, and we call on all countries that have not yet done so to join this call.”
They continued: “We reaffirm our unwavering commitment to the vision of a two-state solution, where two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, live side by side in peace within secure and recognised borders, in accordance with international law and relevant United Nations resolutions.”
— Bernama
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