Explainer: What does Australia’s recognition of Palestine really mean?

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announcement yesterday that Australia will recognise Palestine as a state next month marks a significant shift in Australian foreign policy.

It aligns Canberra with a growing number of nations preparing to formally recognise Palestinian statehood at the United Nations General Assembly in September.

But recognition is largely symbolic with littleimpac to the political or humanitarian reality on the ground.. This explainer examines what it actually means and the potential implications for both Australia and the conflict.

Under the 1933 Montevideo Convention, a sovereign state must meet four criteria: a permanent population, defined territory, effective government, and the capacity for international relations, including formal diplomacy. Recognition can grant a state access to rights and benefits within global institutions, potentially strengthening Palestinian claims to sovereignty and attracting greater international support.

The impact of recognition is limited until the UN Security Council grants Palestine full membership. This would allow it to enjoy protections under international law, establish formal diplomatic and trade relations, and mount legal claims in global bodies.

However without a genuine peace process – including an end to settlement expansion, freedom of movement, and territorial continuity – recognition risks creating a state in name only: fragmented, non-sovereign, and without control over its borders, resources, or defence.

Beyond symbolism, recognition would allow Australia to formally establish diplomatic relations with Palestine, including the exchange of ambassadors, the opening of embassies, and the signing of bilateral agreements. It would also trigger certain rights for Palestine under Australian domestic law, such as diplomatic and state immunities for its officials, enabling them to operate with the same legal protections afforded to representatives of other recognised states.

Settlements – More than 500,000 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank and 233,000 in East Jerusalem, areas Palestinians claim for a future state. In May, Israel approved 22 new settlements – the largest expansion in decades – and has moved closer to annexing parts of the West Bank. Defence Minister Israel Katz called the expansion “a strategic move that prevents the establishment of a Palestinian state”. Settlement growth has fragmented Palestinian territory, making a contiguous state harder to achieve.

East Jerusalem – Palestinians see East Jerusalem as their future capital and regard it as non-negotiable in any agreement. Israel, which annexed East Jerusalem in 1967, claims the entire city as its “eternal and undivided” capital. The city’s status remains one of the most intractable disputes.

Borders – Israel and Palestine  have no internationally recognised borders. Current boundaries follow the 1949 Armistice Lines – the “Green Line” – established after the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. Any final settlement would need to resolve competing territorial claims, negotiate land swaps, and determine control of resources and infrastructure.

Governance – Palestinian politics is divided between Fatah in the West Bank and Hamas in Gaza. A May poll found 32% of Palestinians supported Hamas, 21% backed Fatah, and around one-third supported neither. Abbas remains deeply unpopular, with 80% of Palestinians wanting him to resign. The lack of political unity and leadership succession plans is a major barrier to statehood.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has held talks with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, whose government controls parts of the West Bank while Hamas governs Gaza. Albanese says Abbas has pledged that a future Palestinian state would:

Albanese also said the government wanted all Israeli hostages released.

No. Albanese made it clear that recognition of Palestine is within the context of two states, referencing the fact that Australia was the first member of the United Nations to support the creation of the modern State of Israel as a state for the Jewish people "alongside a state for the Palestinian people". 

"When we recognise the long held and legitimate aspirations of the people of Palestine, we are also upholding and strengthening our commitment to the people of Israel and their right to live in freedom, security and safety," he said. 

Sweden was the first Western European nation to recognise Palestine in 2014. Spain followed 10 years later in 2024. By March 2025, 147 of the 193 UN member states had recognised Palestine.

Several countries are preparing to formally recognise Palestine at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in September including France, the UK and Canada.

Like Australia, these countries have placed conditions on recognition. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced Britain would recognise Palestine unless Israel takes substantive steps towards peace, halts annexations in the West Bank, and agrees to a ceasefire. Malta has also pledged recognition. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney says Canada’s recognition will depend on the Palestinian Authority’s commitment to reforms, the holding of general elections in 2026, and the exclusion of Hamas from government.

France, Canada and the UK have provided no indication that recognition will be paired with concrete measures such as sanctions on Israel, halting arms sales, or boosting humanitarian aid. Both France and the UK remain key military and economic partners of Israel.

On 30 July ll 22 member states of the Arab League, together with all 27 states of the EU, and 17 other countries, signed a declaration in New York that outlines "tangible, timebound, and irreversible steps" towards implementing a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians.

The first step outlined in the declaration is to end the 22-month war between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The declaration supports the deployment of a temporary international stabilization mission, mandated by the U.N. Security Council, and welcomes "the readiness expressed by some member states to contribute troops."

It calls on Israel's leadership to "issue a clear public commitment to the two-state solution, including a sovereign and viable Palestinian State," to immediately end violence and incitement against Palestinians, and to halt all settlement, land grabs, and annexation activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, including East Jerusalem.

London-based outlet al-Araby al-Jadeed reports that Abbas may unilaterally declare the Palestinian Authority a state during September’s UN General Assembly.

Such a move would mean Palestine makes a constitutional declaration outlining borders, governance structure, and the state’s political foundations until a formal constitution is adopted, without agreement from Israel. Palestinian officials say a unilateral declaration would boosting international recognition and move Palestine towards effective statehood. Abbas has also announced elections for a new Palestinian National Council before year’s end.

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to dismantle the Palestinian Authority in response if Abbas makes a unilateral declation, He calling Abbas’s plan “fantasies of a Palestinian state”.

For Gaza’s 2.2 million residents, recognition will not change daily life. The territory remains under Israeli military occupation and blockade, with severe restrictions on movement, goods, and access to basic services. The humanitarian crisis – characterised by mass displacement, food shortages, destroyed infrastructure, and a collapsing health system – cannot be resolved through diplomatic recognition alone. Improvement would require Israel to lift or ease the blockade, allow sustained humanitarian aid, and enable infrastructure repair. Without these measures, recognition will remain symbolic for those in Gaza.

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The 11 days that made Albanese and Labor change their path on Palestinian recognition (The Sydney Morning Herald)

Australia will recognise Palestinian statehood – but what will that mean for people in Gaza? (The Guardian)

Beyond recognition: the challenges of creating a new Palestinian state are so formidable, is it even possible? (Martin Kear, The Conversation)

Ben-Gvir threatens to 'crush' the PA after its president, Abbas, reportedly plans to declare a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly (i24news)

Australia's recognition of Palestinian statehood goes beyond symbolism (ABC)