QUITO: The United States has told other counties that recognition of a Palestinian state will cause more problems, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday.
“We told all these countries, we told them all, we said if you guys do this recognition stuff it’s all fake, it’s not even real, if you do it you’re going to create problems,” Rubio said from Quito, where he met with President Daniel Noboa and his Ecuadorean counterpart.
“There’s going to be a response, it’s going to make it harder to get a ceasefire and it may even trigger theses sorts of actions that you’ve seen, or at least these attempts at these actions,” Rubio said.
Rubio added he would not opine on Israeli discussion of annexation of the West Bank but that it was not final.
The comments are completely opposite to what Saudi Arabia — a key US ally — thinks as it is ready to co-chair an international conference on the Two-State Solution later this month.
On Tuesday, French President Emmanuel Macron discussed the issue with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and issued a strong statement on social media.
Read more: No annexation attempt will derail Two-State Solution push: Macron
“No offensive, annexation attempt, or forced displacement of populations will derail the momentum we have created with the [Saudi] Crown Prince — momentum that many partners have already joined,” Macron said.
Although a NATO member and close US ally, France has a history of challenging the US policies and actions.
It’s a developing story. Details to follow.