The move to recognise a Palestinian state, announced by 10 countries this week, could promote normalisation of Israeli relations within the region, a UK government minister has told The National.
Hamish Falconer, the UK's Middle East and North Africa minister, said the historic step of recognising Palestinian statehood was part of a wider effort to address the threat to a two-state solution from the war Israel is waging in Gaza.
The UK is keen to ensure that a shift back to this principle can persuade Israel to build on its relationships with its neighbours so that it can participate in regional security, such as the ties it secured under the Abraham Accords.
Mr Falconer said the pathway to peace would be preserved by the recognition announcement in the first place.
“The UK will continue to work alongside allies to support a democratic Palestinian Authority, tackle terrorism in the region, and advance full normalisation in the Middle East,” he told The National.
The UK delegation at the UN General Assembly meetings in New York this week will press counterparts on a framework diplomats have developed for ending the war and moving to a two-state solution. Expansion of the Abraham Accords remains the ambition of the US government, which secured the pact between Israel, UAE and Bahrain during US President Donald Trump's first term.
“As the UK and the international community have stated countless times, the two-state solution remains the only viable and just solution to the conflict,” Mr Falconer added. “It is the only solution and will enable a safe and secure Israel to live alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state.
“With the two-state solution under threat, this was the moment to act, preserving a pathway to peace.
“But recognition alone won't end the appalling situation in Gaza. We continue to call for an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages and urgent delivery of aid to those who need it.
“The UK will continue to work alongside allies to support a democratic Palestinian Authority, tackle terrorism in the region and advance full normalisation in the Middle East.”
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced the recognition of Palestine on Sunday in a video message, highlighting the need to keep hope alive for a two-state solution based on full negotiations between the Israelis and Palestinians.
Mr Falconer has talked of the shift away from the model that underpinned the Middle East Peace Process for decades, warning that extremists on both sides seek a total victory over the other, in effect one state with complete control over the whole area. “That will not work, there are two people there,” he said.
While UK officials have pressed for talks and a ceasefire, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has intensified military offensives. Mr Falconer warned that Israel is “resisting the steps we think it needs to take”.
Working alongside France and in co-ordination with Australia and Canada, the UK announcement on Sunday means these countries can continue pressing Israel and “do so in good company”.
UK officials are anticipating Israeli retaliation to the announcement and Mr Falconer has warned that “things are already getting worse in the West Bank”.
In New York, UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said she had warned Israel not to pursue plans hatched by Prime Minister Benjamin to annex parts of the Palestinian territory in the West Bank.
In response to concerns Israel could respond by speeding up settlement of the West Bank, part of the occupied territory which would form a Palestinian state, Ms Cooper said: “We have been clear, and I have been clear to the Israeli foreign minister, we have been clear to the Israeli government, that they must not do that.”
The UK has already imposed three rounds of sanctions over the huge expansion it has seen in settlement activity on the ground. “The conflict must end, dignity must be restored for both Israelis and Palestinians,” Mr Falconer said. “This is how you defeat terrorism, with politics.”
British officials have warned their Israeli counterparts that the latest operation in Gaza very unlikely to bring the outcome Mr Netanyahu's government and commanders want.
The officials say the UN General Assembly meetings, including a summit co-sponsored by France and Saudi Arabia on Monday on the two-state solution, could result in an international consensus on the framework for a ceasefire and eventual peace.
The elements of the framework that Ms Cooper and her team will offer include transitional governance and security arrangements. The framework builds on Palestinian Authority statements in July committing to ensure Hamas has no role to play in the future of a Palestinian state.
