France Reaffirms Strong Support for Palestinian Statehood with Reform Commitments – President Emmanuel Macron

France Reaffirms Strong Support for Palestinian Statehood with Reform Commitments – President Emmanuel Macron
Paris, June 10, 2025

France announced on Tuesday that it has received new reform pledges from the Palestinian Authority, ahead of a key international conference next week, potentially positioning Paris as the most prominent Western power to recognize an independent Palestinian state.

The Élysée Palace said President Emmanuel Macron had received a letter from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, in which he condemned the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, called for the release of all hostages, and pledged further reforms.

Eighty-nine-year-old Abbas has led the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority (PA) since the death of veteran leader Yasser Arafat in 2004. The PA exercises limited self-governance over parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank but lost control of Gaza to its rival group Hamas in 2007. The PA has previously condemned the Hamas assault that triggered the ongoing Gaza war and has called for the militant group to be disarmed as part of any future resolution.

Macron, who is working to co-host an international conference with Saudi Arabia on the recognition of a Palestinian state, received what his office called "unprecedented" commitments in Abbas’s letter, though no specific details were disclosed. Quoting from the letter, the French president’s office stated:

“Hamas will no longer govern Gaza and must hand over its weapons and military capabilities to the Palestinian security forces, who, with Arab and international assistance, will oversee their removal from the occupied Palestinian territories.”

Israel has stated it will not allow the PA to assume any role in post-war Gaza and has condemned any move by countries to recognize Palestinian statehood, arguing it would amount to rewarding Hamas for its attack.

French officials have said that Macron is leaning toward recognizing a Palestinian state ahead of a United Nations-backed summit jointly hosted by France and Saudi Arabia, scheduled for June 17–20.