Former US secretary of state Antony Blinken has said that the recognition of a Palestinian state is a rebuke to Hamas rather than a reward, but must come secondary to the matters of returning the hostages, preventing famine in Gaza, and ending the war, he wrote in a recent op-ed in The Wall Street Journal.
“Israel long ago achieved two of its three stated objectives in Gaza,” Blinken wrote in WSJ, referring to Israel’s goals of destroying Hamas’ military capabilities and killing those responsible for the October 7 massacre.
Israel’s goal to return the remaining hostages, he said, will not be accomplished by following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to occupy Gaza, with Netanyahu's plan simply lengthening the conflict and amplifying anguish on both sides.
Blinken noted that key Arab states are willing to help Palestinians govern and rebuild Gaza while preventing Hamas from reemerging into power, but will “only [do so] if there’s a credible political path toward Palestinian self-determination.”
Conditions of recognizing a Palestinian state
Recognition of a Palestinian state is necessary, and not only if Israel wishes to resume normalization with Saudi Arabia. But, Blinken pointed out, recognition must be based on predetermined conditions.
“No one,” Blinken said, “should expect Israel to accept a Palestinian state that is led by Hamas or other terrorists, that is militarized or has independent armed militias, that aligns with Iran or others that reject Israel’s right to exist, that educates and preaches hatred of Jews or Israel.”
He suggested a timeline of three years and deemed the United Nations Security Council as the most suitable candidate to judge whether or not Palestinians uphold the aforementioned conditions. “America’s veto would reassure Israelis,” he noted.
Meanwhile, he pushed, Israel must address the growing humanitarian crisis in Gaza and implement a withdrawal plan. Israel must also stop allowing settlements to expand in the West Bank, demolishing Palestinian homes there and in east Jerusalem, and hold extremist violence on all sides accountable. Israel would also need to “support the reform of the Palestinian Authority instead of trying to undermine it.”
Until then, he stated, Israel cannot maintain the idea that Palestinians will tolerate being a “non-people without national rights.” As well, Palestinians must understand that ideas of a state “from the river to the sea” are unfeasible.
“No one is going anywhere, whatever the delusions of extremists on both sides.”