France to help Palestinians draft constitution for future state, says Macron
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French President Emmanuel Macron welcoming Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (left) to the Elysee Palace in Paris, on Nov 11.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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- France will assist the Palestinian Authority in drafting a constitution for a future Palestinian state, according to President Macron.
- A joint committee will address legal aspects, aiming to finalise conditions for the "State of Palestine," with France contributing €100 million in aid to Gaza.
- Abbas envisions a democratic, unarmed state committed to dialogue and peace, while the US criticised recognising Palestine as rewarding Hamas.
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PARIS - France will help the Palestinian Authority draft a constitution for a future state, President Emmanuel Macron said on Nov 11 after talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Paris.
A number of major Western nations including France formally recognised a Palestinian state
A US-brokered, Israel-Hamas ceasefire
Mr Macron said France and the Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited self-rule under Israeli military occupation in the West Bank, would set up a joint committee to work on drawing up a new Palestinian constitution.
“This committee will be responsible for working on all legal aspects: constitutional, institutional and organisational,” he told reporters.
“It will contribute to the work of developing a new constitution, a draft of which President Abbas has presented to me, and will aim to finalise all the conditions for such a State of Palestine,” Mr Macron said.
He added France would contribute €100 million (S$150 million) in humanitarian aid to Gaza for 2025.
Mr Abbas said: “We are committed to a culture of dialogue and peace, and we want a democratic, unarmed state committed to the rule of law, transparency, justice, pluralism and the rotation of power.”
He said he valued efforts by US President Donald Trump and global partners to end the fighting in Gaza and bring about the next stage towards a durable peace with a disarming of militant groups including Hamas.
The move by France, Britain, Canada and Australia to recognise a Palestinian state aligned them with over 140 other countries also backing Palestinians’ aspiration to forge an independent homeland from Israeli-occupied territories.
But US President Donald Trump condemned the recognition wave, echoing close ally Israel’s position that to do so would “reward” Hamas for its Oct 7, 2023 attack
