Trinidad and Tobago recognises Palestine

Trinidad and Tobago is one of the latest countries to formally recognise the state of Palestine, in a Cabinet decision on Thursday.

A release from the Ministry of Foreign and Caricom Affairs said the decision was based on the advice of its minister, Dr Amery Browne.

It said the recognition would help achieve peace by strengthening international consensus on Palestine's statehood.

"TT has been a longstanding advocate of the two-state solution, as we believe that this is the only credible path to peace and security for Palestinians, the Israelis and, by extension, the wider region. Recognition of Palestine is moral and just and demonstrates TT's acknowledgement of and support for the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people.

"TT will join 141 other countries that recognise Palestine, Algeria being the first to have done so in 1988," it said.

The release said TT's support for the Palestinian people's right to self-determination can be seen in its endorsement of key resolutions on Palestine at the UN General Assembly (UNGA).

These include Resolution 67/19, which gave Palestine non-member observer state status in the UNGA, and the annual resolutions of the UNGA on the permanent sovereignty of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan over their natural resources, and the peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine.

"Since the outbreak of the most recent round of violent conflict in Gaza in October 2023, TT also supported resolutions adopted at the Emergency Special Sessions of the UNGA held on October 27 and December 10, 2023, on the protection of civilians and upholding legal and humanitarian obligations."

It said the Prime Minister is also on the record at an October 23 post-Cabinet media briefing speaking in support of the two-state solution.

It said Browne has reiterated this position consistently over the last seven months, since the latest conflict began.