Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez interested in first-ever Spain-Palestine bilateral summit

In a remarkable move, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez recently announced that Spain and Palestine are ready to hold their first bilateral summit before the end of this year to strengthen ties, according to a report in Xinhua.

The Spain-Palestine summit can facilitate the signing of several collaboration agreements, PM Sanchez announced during the opening ceremony of the political year in Madrid. He also expressed his interest in supporting the UN agency for Palestine refugees.

Spain recognised Palestine as a state in May amid international outrage over the humanitarian crisis raging in Gaza after the Israeli military launched its operation in the besieged enclave. The brutal conflict has been making global headlines every day.

Reject “double standards” regarding Gaza crisis: Pedro Sanchez

On July 11, the Spanish Prime Minister urged the global community to reject “double standards” regarding the conflict in Gaza as he joined Nato leaders in supporting Ukraine, according to a report in Zee Biz on Thursday.

Spain under Pedro Sanchez has infuriated the Israeli government by recognising a Palestinian state and criticising Israel’s conduct of its deadly military operation against scores of Hamas militants in Gaza. The crisis has been raging since October 7.

The Israel-Hamas fighting erupted one fine morning last year as Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israeli cities, killing some 1,200 people and taking others hostages. Israel, on the other hand, has already claimed more than 40,000 lives in the Gaza Strip.