Danish Parliament Rejects Bill to Recognize the Palestinian State

The Danish parliament has turned down a bill to recognize the Palestinian state, according to Reuters. Today, Ireland, Spain, and Norway have officially recognized the Palestinian state after announcing their intentions last week. In response, Israel labeled their actions as a "reward to terrorism" and recalled its ambassadors.

The Danish proposal, submitted in February by four left-wing parties, faced opposition. During the first parliamentary debate in April, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen stated, "We cannot recognize an independent Palestinian state because the necessary preconditions are not present." He added, "We cannot support this resolution, but we hope to do so in the future." Rasmussen was absent during today's vote.

Following the October 7 Hamas attack, which led to Israel's military actions in Gaza, Denmark acknowledged Israel's right to self-defense. Recently, Denmark urged Israel to exercise restraint and adhere to international laws.

Dublin, Madrid, and Oslo framed their recognition as a measure to hasten ceasefire efforts between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, urging other nations to follow suit.

Currently, nine out of the 27 European Union member states recognize the State of Palestine. Eight of these countries recognized Palestine before joining the EU, following Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's declaration of independence on November 15, 1988. These countries include Malta, Cyprus, the Czech Republic and Slovakia (formerly Czechoslovakia), Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, and Poland. Sweden joined them in 2014, becoming the first country to recognize Palestine post-EU membership.