From the Liveblog of
Sunday, May 11, 2025
Ahead of Trump’s Mideast visit, Sa’ar says recognizing Palestinian state would be ‘counterproductive’
Nava Freiberg is The Times of Israel's deputy diplomatic correspondent.
Ahead of US President Donald Trump’s upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar this week, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar notes that “there have been talks about an initiative to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state,” and warns that “such initiatives are not constructive, but counterproductive.”
“They will only serve as a prize for Hamas’s terror,” he says during a press conference with his German counterpart in Jerusalem.
He adds that any attempt to unilaterally recognize Palestinian statehood “will only harm future prospects for a bilateral process – and will push us to unilateral actions in response.”
Last night, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee called reports claiming Trump was set to recognize a Palestinian state during his visit “nonsense.”
The Times of Israel Community.