The French presidents pledge to recognize a Palestinian state emboldened Hamas and scuttled a possible Gaza truce, the US secretary of state has said

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has blamed France's announcement on recognizing a Palestinian state for the collapse of ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas.

The Palestinian group was "emboldened" by French President Emmanuel Macron's decision, Rubio claimed in an interview with the Eternal Word TV network on Thursday.

Macron announced that his country would recognize Palestine as a state in a surprise statement on X last month, adding that he would formally do so at the UN General Assembly in September in New York. France would be the first G7 country or member of the UN Security Council to do so.

The UK and Canada followed Paris' lead shortly afterwards, prompting criticism from the US and Israel.

"Talks with Hamas fell apart on the day Macron made the unilateral decision that he's going to recognize the Palestinian state," Rubio asserted.

He added that Hamas could be "emboldened" by plans to recognize Palestinian sovereignty. "If I'm Hamas, I'd basically conclude: 'Let's not do a ceasefire, we can be rewarded, we can claim it as a victory'," Rubio said.

Macron's statement came amid efforts by US President Donald Trump's administration to end hostilities between Israel and the militant group. In late July, West Jerusalem withdrew its negotiators after more than two weeks of indirect talks in Qatar. Israel said the decision was made after it was displeased with Hamas' response to its ceasefire proposal. Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff said that the group's position showed "a lack of desire to reach a cease-fire in Gaza."

(RT.com)