The Transport Secretary has defended Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer's decision to recognise Palestine, claiming it will safeguard the possibility of resolving the Israeli-Palestinian dispute through a "two-state solution".
Speaking to GB News, Heidi Alexander explained that recent Israeli military operations and territorial expansion activities threaten to make peaceful coexistence between two sovereign nations increasingly unattainable.
Delivering his plan to the nation, Starmer said: "I’ve always said that we will recognise a Palestinian state as a contribution to a proper peace process at the moment of maximum impact for the two-state solution.
"With that solution now under threat, this is the moment to act."
GB News
|Heidi Alexander defended Keir Starmer's plan to recognise Palestine as a state
Responding to the Prime Minister, Israel's Foreign Ministry said it "rejects the statement".
Defending Starmer, Alexander explained: "This is not about Hamas, this is about the Palestinian people, and we need to be very careful not to conflate Hamas with the Palestinian people, just as we shouldn't conflate the Israeli people with the actions of the Israeli Government.
"The truth of the matter is that we have long held a position as the Labour Party and brought that into Government, that we believe a two-state solution is the way to provide lasting security to both Israelis and Palestinians."
Alexander set out specific requirements that Israel must meet within an "eight-week timeframe" to participate in peace negotiations.
PA | Sir Keir Starmer has addressed the nation about recognising Palestine
She stated: "They've got eight weeks to act. The ball is in their court. If they want to be part of the discussions and sat at the table about an enduring peace, then they need to allow aid in commit to a ceasefire, halt the annexation of the West Bank, and engage in a genuine process about a two-state solution.
"But let me also be clear that Hamas need to act too. They need to release the hostages. They need to disarm and there is no future for Hamas in the in the governance of a Palestinian state.
"We've been unequivocal in our condemnation of Hamas. It's a vile terrorist organisation that has committed appalling atrocities, and so they have to act, as well as us needing action from Israel."
Alexander indicated that formal recognition of Palestinian statehood will occur at the moment of greatest strategic value, for "maximum effect" in the UK's peace efforts.
GB News
|Alexander told GB News that a 'two-state solution is the way to provide lasting security to both Israelis and Palestinians'
Alexander told GB News: "The act of recognising a state internationally is to recognise its legal existence. Clearly, if we're going to get to that point of having a safe and secure Israel existing alongside a sovereign and viable Palestinian state, that's a two-state solution.
"We have said as a Government that we would recognise the state of Palestine at the point in time when it could have maximum effect. And I think if you the British people watching their television screens are horrified by what they are seeing."
She added: "We have to act to protect the viability of the two-state solution, and we also have to act to ratchet pressure up on Israel to lift the restrictions on allowing aid in.
"The gravity of the situation is clear for all to see, and so we think that that moment is fast approaching now, and we need to use this diplomatic leverage, working with our international allies, to try and chart a different course for the region. The bloodshed has to stop."