Australia, along with France, Britain and Canada joined a growing list of countries recognising a Palestinian state in the year since war broke out in the Gaza Strip where Israel's military has levelled swathes of the enclave, driving nearly all of its 2.3 million people from their homes.
About 145 of the 193 member-states of the United Nations recognise Palestine as a state, including most of the global south, Russia, China and India.
00:00Today I can confirm that at the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly in September,
00:10Australia will recognise the State of Palestine. Australia will recognise the
00:16ride of the Palestinian people to a state of their own, predicated on the commitments
00:22Australia has received from the Palestinian Authority. We will work with the international
00:29community to make this right a reality. A two-state solution is humanity's best hope to break the
00:37cycle of violence in the Middle East and to bring an end to the conflict, suffering and starvation
00:45in Gaza. The international community's vision for a just and lasting peace in the Middle East
00:52always encompassed two States living side by side with internationally recognised borders.
01:00The Netanyahu Government is rapidly expanding illegal settlements. Settler violence in the West Bank
01:08has increased. There have been threats to annex the occupied Palestinian territories and proposing
01:16the permanent forced displacement of the Palestinian people. These actions,
01:24together with the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, risk putting a two-state solution out of reach
01:31for a generation. This is a practical contribution towards building momentum. This is not Australia
01:40acting alone. What we are seeing is a range of countries engaging, engaging in detailed dialogue as well,
01:52behind the scenes, if you like, talking about what a peace looks like in the region.
02:01And it's something that has had an impact on the world. This conflict, which has gone on for such a long period of time, I think Australians want to see an end to it.
02:15And an end to it can only be secured when both Israelis and Palestinians can live in peace and security.
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