President Milanović in New York: Palestine should be recognized, it is not a reward for the Palestinians, it is their right
“Palestine should be recognized, and Croatia should do the same. When that happens depends on a proposal from the Government to Parliament, but I will support it,” said the President of the Republic Zoran Milanović after participating in the High-level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution, held on Monday at UN headquarters in New York.
“I agreed with what was said there, and we supported the declaration,” President Milanović added.
He also commented on the recognition of Palestine by France, announced at the conference by French President Macron. “France has recognized Palestine; it is one more country that has done so. This is not some kind of reward or concession to the Palestinians, it is their right. That right stems from UN Resolution 181 of November 1947. The entire tragedy of Palestine and the Palestinian people can only be understood in the broader context of events over the past hundred years,” he said, adding that “Palestine should have had its own state long ago.”
Asked by journalists whether the recognition of Palestine would change anything, especially given that the Israeli Prime Minister has said a Palestinian state will never be created, President Milanović replied: “Israel will continue killing; it is a murderous regime that has decided it can do so as long as it has a protector.”
When asked what he expects from US President Donald Trump’s speech, President Milanović said: “I don’t expect anything. He will oppose the recognition of Palestine, that much is clear. Why that is the case is harder for me to understand. How is it in the interest of the United States to support the Zionist regime in this way? Until 1991, I could understand it — because of the Cold War. But everything that has happened since then has been to the detriment of the US. It does America no good, especially in terms of security.”
“As for Hamas, it was created by Israel. Just as the Mujahideen were, in a certain sense, created by the US administration, so too did Israel — in order to weaken Fatah, the organization Arafat belonged to and which enjoyed great legitimacy among Arabs and Palestinians — create Hamas, a product of the Israeli secret services,” the President added.
The Republic of Croatia joined the final document on 5 September at the instruction of the President of the Republic, which was subsequently approved by the Government. The conference, initiated by France and Saudi Arabia, aimed to revive the political process for peace in the Middle East and the realization of a two-state solution — Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace, security, and with internationally recognized borders.
The New York Declaration is significant because, for the first time, a large group of UN member states — including many Arab countries — unequivocally condemned both the Hamas attacks of 7 October 2023 and the Israeli military operations in Gaza, which resulted in civilian casualties and a humanitarian catastrophe. The declaration affirms that lasting peace in the Middle East can only come through a political solution, not war or occupation, and calls on all parties to renounce violence.
FOTO: Ured predsjednika Republike Hrvatske / Marko Beljan