New York, Sept. 22 (Petra) – French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Monday that France formally recognizes the State of Palestine.

Speaking at the High-level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution at the United Nations headquarters, co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia, Macron said the recognition "opens the door to breaking the cycle of violence." He also noted that other countries are expected to recognize Palestine today, stressing the need to "do everything possible to preserve the possibility of achieving a two-state solution." //Petra// AF