The US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, criticized France’s recent move to rally support for the recognition of a Palestinian state as ill-timed and out of place in the current conflict in Gaza. In an interview with Fox News, Huckabee was quoted as having stated that if France is serious about building a Palestinian state, it should “carve out a piece of the French Riviera” instead of putting pressure on Israel.
France is hosting an international conference at the United Nations this month with Saudi Arabia to try to revive the stalled two-state solution. The effort has been met with firm resistance from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, which opposes renewed international pressure for Palestinian statehood. Paris has also suggested that it will formally recognize a Palestinian state in the coming year.
Huckabee pointed to the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel as a watershed moment. “October 7 changed a lot of things,” he said, and insisted that negotiating Palestinian statehood in an ongoing conflict is “incredibly inappropriate.”
His comments followed those of Israeli authorities accusing French President Emmanuel Macron of embarking on a “crusade against the Jewish state” after Macron urged European nations to make their opposition to Israel tougher if the Gaza humanitarian crisis escalated. Barely a week ago, Israel approved the construction of 22 new settlements in the West Bank a move unanimously denounced by the international community as illegal and a barrier to peace.
Huckabee, who is also a strong defender of Israel, rejected the idea of Israeli occupation of Palestinian land, upholding his position against undue pressure on Israel’s policy. The scandal highlights the profound disagreements over the Israeli-Palestinian issue amid a growing conflict and the realigning of international interests.
