Media release: New Zealand Jewish Council…
The New Zealand Jewish Council has long held that the only viable and just resolution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict is a negotiated two-state solution that results in a secure and recognised State of Israel alongside a peaceful and democratic State of Palestine. Such a resolution must be reached through direct negotiations between the parties, supported by the broader Arab world, and embedded in guarantees of mutual recognition and peaceful coexistence.
The Council is concerned that the Government may move to recognise a Palestinian state in the absence of a comprehensive peace agreement, and urges Ministers to consider whether this would truly advance a peaceful and stable two-state outcome. For decades, New Zealand governments of all political stripes have understood that premature recognition risks undermining, rather than advancing, the peace process. Recognition has always been envisaged as the culmination of a negotiated settlement and not a substitute for one.
The Council does not comment on Israeli domestic policy. It does comment on Israel’s right to exist and defend itself and on matters of New Zealand policy that affect Jewish New Zealanders. This statement is being made in response to media requests for our position on a potential shift in New Zealand policy that would directly impact our community. As NZJC spokesperson Juliet Moses notes, there is a clear difference between commenting on Israeli policy and commenting on New Zealand policy about Israel that bears on Israel’s legitimacy and security, and on the safety and wellbeing of Jews in New Zealand.
Such a decision risks abandoning the Israeli hostages still held in Gaza in inhumane conditions without access to the Red Cross. It leaves Hamas armed, in control of territory, and able to regroup and rearm, creating conditions for future conflict rather than peace. It also removes incentives for Palestinian leaders to negotiate the core final status issues, including agreed borders, security arrangements, Jerusalem, refugees and mutual recognition.
Recognising an entity with no agreed borders, no unified and effective government, and no demonstrated commitment to live in peace with its neighbours risks entrenching instability. It signals that significant political concessions can be obtained without meeting the responsibilities that go with them.
New Zealand’s standing as a principled voice for peace and the rules-based international order is jeopardised by a potential move that is out of step with the realities on the ground and that risks prolonging the conflict. The New Zealand Jewish Council urges the Government to remain steadfast in supporting a genuine two-state solution that emerges from direct negotiations, mutual recognition and security guarantees for both peoples. Anything less risks replacing the prospect of peace with the certainty of further war and bloodshed.
