President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa stated on Saturday that Portugal’s recognition of the State of Palestine on Sunday will be “an important moment,” expressing his full support for the process. “It can be said that it is an important moment, tomorrow, this formalization by Portugal, announced yesterday by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” he said to journalists in New York, USA. The head of state assured that he followed “the entire process,” which has “his full support.” “Portugal has always defended the principle of the existence of two sovereign states and maintains the same position. […] Acting at this moment, being the decision of the Portuguese Government, is to act to still open a possibility in the direction of having two States,” he added.
The body overseen by Paulo Rangel confirmed on Friday that Portugal will recognize the State of Palestine tomorrow, September 21, indicating that “the Official Declaration of Recognition will take place before next week’s High-Level Conference.”
Earlier, the Élysée Palace announced, also on Friday, that 10 countries, including Portugal and France, would recognize the Palestinian state on Monday, in a conference on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
Besides France, which is behind the initiative, and Portugal, the other participants “are Andorra, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Luxembourg, Malta, the United Kingdom, and San Marino,” said a counselor to French President Emmanuel Macron to the media.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed this Friday the news that Portugal would recognize the State of Palestine, which “will take place before the High-Level Conference next week.” Daniela Filipe | 19:58 – 19/09/2025
Paulo Rangel stated on September 15 that he had not identified any obstacles to the recognition of Palestine as a State and promised news for the following week.
Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro said on July 31 that he would consult political parties represented in the Assembly of the Republic, as well as the President of the Republic, to consider the possibility of recognizing Palestine at that UN meeting.
It should be noted that, as of March 2025, Palestine was recognized as a sovereign state by 147 of the 193 UN member countries, approximately 76%.
Leading the efforts for a two-state solution and the recognition of the State of Palestine are France and Saudi Arabia, which promoted an International Conference for the Two-State Solution in July, concluding with a declaration of support signed by several countries.
At the time, the French president committed to recognizing the State of Palestine at the next UN General Assembly, a stance followed by Barbados, Ireland, Jamaica, Norway, and Spain.
