The stakes are high and deeply divisive: should recognition of Palestinian statehood precede peace talks, or vice-versa? Are Israel and Palestine ready for either? EPTV investigates.

Palestinian statehood: the foundations or culmination of peace?

https://api.multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/documents/20125/11921923/m003-0306-enxx.srt

498 votes in favour, 88 against  and 111 abstentions.

By this vote, the EU Parliament signalled  its support for Palestinian statehood

as well as a two-state solution for peace.

The adopted resolution is the result  of long and difficult negotiations

between the political families  in the Chamber.

The text adopted does not oblige the states  to also recognise the State of Palestine.

EuroparlTV met various players  involved on the matter:

MEPs, Palestinian Authority  representatives,

an Israeli Ambassador, historian...  all gave us their perspective on the issue.

It was her political group  which compelled Parliament

to hold a vote on the recognition  of Palestinian statehood.

Today, developments  on Palestinian territory

show that we are moving  towards a non-solution,

the two-state solution  may no longer be viable.

We must therefore put a stop  to what is happening today,

and then to bring the various players  to the negotiating table.

For this to happen,  this recognition is necessary.

I think there is no alternative  than to recognise the statehood

The stance is shared by the Palestinian  Authority Ambassador to the EU.

Leila Shahid believes  recognising Palestinian statehood

is an important brake  on Israeli settlements.

Israel claims to be negotiating, but is  setting up settlements on a daily basis.

There are now more than half a million  settlers on Palestinian territory,

a 700km-long wall and East Jerusalem has  been totally besieged and annexed.

if we allow this government  to establish settlements as it is doing now

in one single state where by 2020 there  will be as many Palestinians as Israelis.

The EU Social Democrats urge recognition  of Palestine without preconditions.

An unthinkable aim for garnering  a large enough majority in Plenary.

Following negotiations,  the text adopted stipulates that Parliament

backs the Palestinian state in principle  as well as a two-state solution

and states that this must go hand in hand  with renewed peace talks.

True recognition of the Palestinian state  begins where the peace talk process ends

between the two sides because both  well and truly already exist now,

A key condition is the democratisation  of the parties

who are brought face to face  at the talks.

Well, now we have  a democratic state, Israel,

but facing Israel is a state  which doesn't rule by democracy.

Therefore, a first step  to get things moving

is to support a real transition  to democracy in Palestine.

This of course means to isolate all factions  which deny democratic principles.

The crux for MEPs, who voted  overwhelmingly in favour of the text,

is to encourage the resumption  of dialogue between Israel and Palestine.

But how does the Hebrew state  view this message?

The Israeli Ambassador to the EU  is very clear on the matter.

The thing is, you cannot enforce  on the Palestinians and Israelis

your opinions from the outside.  I'm sorry, they're two independent entities

and they have to want to do it  by themselves,

You want, I understand, or that's what  parliamentarians tell me at least,

to push the Israelis and Palestinians  to talk to each other.

Unfortunately, what you are doing is  to keep them further apart from each other.

Recognition of Palestine  divides opinion in Israel.

Elie Barnavi, historian  and former Israeli Ambassador in France

is part of a group of 800 Israeli intellectuals  who have signed a petition

in support of recognising  Palestinian statehood.

There will be an international,  imposed solution, or there won't be one.

This is for various reasons, notably the  great political weakness of the opponents.

We can make war. You don't have  to be politically strong to make war.

War unifies people.  Bringing about peace is another matter.

When Rabin, the Prime Minister, tried,  he was assassinated.

What the Israelis and Palestinians  are being asked to do

are things which are extremely painful  and deeply divisive.

While it may not have legal value, the EP's  vote is important and heavily symbolic.

It is the only space in which the opinions  of all 28 Member States can be expressed,

that isn't nothing.  It represents half a billion EU citizens.

It would be totally incongruous for the EP  not to recognise a partner it work with.

I am the Ambassador to the EU,  who do I represent?

the more we see this increasingly  awful state of affairs:

a society which is forced to live together,  two halves are forced to live together,

but which is by definition unequal-  an occupier and the occupied.

So if there is no Palestinian state,  no separation,

which is an anomaly  in terms of international law-

well we will continue to have this situation  and it will be the end of the Zionist project.

After EP's vote, the UN Security Council  is now to act on the diplomatic struggle

between the Palestinian Authority  and Israel.

Palestine have already submitted a  roadmap for lasting peace.

If accepted, the roadmap  aims to establish peace by 2015,

and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from  the Occupied territory before late 2017.