The Trump administration boycotts U.N. summit on Palestinian statehood co-sponsored by France and Saudi Arabia, as critics call the event a stumbling block to peace efforts in the Middle East.

Saudi Arabia can normalize ties with Israel only after the establishment of a Palestinian state, Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Bin Farhan said, reiterating the kingdom’s stance days after President Emmanuel Macron said France would recognize it in September.

The editorial manager for the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication, Andrea Tornielli, called for a “two-state solution” and recognition of Palestine as a state.

A United Nations High-level conference on a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine got underway in New York on Monday.

Starmer is already committed to recognising a state of Palestine which he has described as “an inalienable right”, but, unlike French president Emmanuel Macron, he has resisted doing so immediately. While Starmer does not need US approval, coordinating foreign policy with the US has long been a key strategy.

Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Saturday that recognising the State of Palestine before it is established could be counterproductive. "I am very much in favour of the State of Palestine but I am not in favour of recognising it prior to establishing it,

France has announced it will recognize the state of Palestine, a move that could shift discussions about the Middle East’s future.

French President Emmanuel Macron shared a letter addressed to the leader of the Palestinian Authority on Thursday, citing a need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

Keir Starmer will need to weigh up whether the timing of recognition of a Palestinian state is more important for the peace process in the Middle East or his own domestic political problems, says