Spain’s foreign minister advocates recognizing Palestinian state during Berlin visit

Spain’s Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares on Wednesday sharply criticized Israeli government policies and said recognition of a Palestinian state is necessary to preserve the two-state solution.

“I don’t think there will be security, peace, and stability in the Middle East if we don’t implement the two-state solution,” Albares said during a panel discussion at the Jacques Delors Centre at the Hertie School in Berlin.

He criticized the Netanyahu government’s policies in Gaza and the West Bank, pointed to growing violence by Israeli extremists and said Spain’s decision to recognize Palestine, later followed by several European countries, was necessary.

“When you see the situation in Gaza, what is phase two of the peace plan? No one knows. The illegal settlement in the West Bank is spreading more and more. The violence of the settlers is out of hand,” he said.

“At the end, the recognition of the state of Palestine is the best, almost the only tool that we have to protect the two-state solution. We are two inches from making it almost impossible,” Albares warned.

He stressed that reviving diplomatic efforts and restarting negotiations on a two-state solution remained the only way to ensure security and a peaceful future for both Palestinians and Israelis.

Spain recognized the state of Palestine in 2024. In 2025, several other European countries, including France, the UK and Belgium, followed with similar moves.

Germany, however, has remained increasingly isolated in Europe on the issue, with Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s government insisting recognition should come only at the end of a peace process.