Slovenia became the latest European Union country to recognize an independent Palestinian state, following the steps of several other European countries, including Spain, Ireland, and Norway.
The move was sanctioned by the Slovenian parliament on June 4 by a majority vote after calls for a referendum on the matter by the country's largest opposition party were dismissed.
Slovenia’s Prime Minister Robert Golob said on social media that the move represents a beacon of hope to end the conflict in Gaza.
Last week's decision comes as several European countries initiated a wider effort to coordinate pressure on the Israeli government to end the conflict.
The vote was endorsed by a parliamentary group for foreign affairs on June 3, a day ahead of the scheduled vote. A referendum initiated by the Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS), headed by former premier Janez Jansa, would have delayed the vote for at least a month. However, the proposal did not come to fruition.
According to the SDS, which is the country's largest opposition party, the time was not right to move towards recognizing an independent Palestinian state. Moreover, the move is seen as beneficial only to the Hamas terrorist organization.
Following attempts by the majority ruling coalition to mitigate the referendum, the SDS subsequently withdrew its proposal, only to re-submit it hours later. The Parliament Committee for Foreign Affairs, however, declared it inadequate and dismissed it at an extraordinary session.
The decision was approved with 52 votes out of Slovenia's 90-member parliament, with no votes against it after the opposition SDS party had left the session.
Of the 27 EU member states, eight have already recognized a Palestinian state, including Sweden, Cyprus, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Romania, and Bulgaria. Malta has indicated that it may soon follow suit.
The war effort by Israel against the Hamas terrorist group, which controls much of Gaza, is ongoing following the Oct. 7 massacre in which Hamas terrorists brutally murdered over 1,200 people. Nearly 300 people were taken hostage by the terrorist group, of which around 130 remain captive.
Meanwhile, the ongoing war has resulted in tens of thousands of casualties and hundreds of thousands of displaced civilians since the war began.
According to a May 22, press briefing with White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan, "President Biden believes that a two-state solution that guarantees Israel's security and also a future of dignity and security for the Palestinian people is the best way to bring about long-term security and stability for everyone in the region."