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The Trump administration is boycotting a high-level summit on Palestinian statehood, co-sponsored by France and Saudi Arabia, scheduled to take place at United Nations headquarters in New York City on Monday.
The event was originally planned for June with French President Emmanuel Macron in attendance but was postponed due to the 12-day war between Israel and Iran. Representatives from more than 50 nations are expected to speak at the High-level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine, with dozens of additional countries listed as participants.
State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce slammed the event as “unproductive” in a statement on Monday, noting, “This is a publicity stunt that comes in the middle of delicate diplomatic efforts to end the conflict. Far from promoting peace, the conference will prolong the war, embolden Hamas, and reward its obstruction and undermine real-world efforts to achieve peace.
By contrast, NATO member and U.S. ally Turkey welcomed the French move, with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan congratulating Macron during a phone call between the two leaders.
Avi Pazner, former Israeli ambassador to France and Italy, told Fox News Digital that there is “no rational explanation” for Macron’s decision, as everyone understands that it is “not feasible.”
Pazner suggested that Macron may be attempting to gain credibility with France’s significant Muslim and Arab minorities, which some estimate to be between 8%- 10% of the country.
Aaron David Miller, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a former negotiator at the State Department under both Democratic and Republican administrations, told Fox News Digital that Trump has his own set of objectives and sensibilities regarding the issue of Palestinian statehood.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas holds a leadership meeting in Ramallah, the West Bank, on April 23, 2025. (REUTERS/Mohammed Torokman)
“It was the view of successive administrations that unilateral statehood would prejudge and undermine the conditions necessary for negotiations,” he added. “If France is recognizing a Palestinian state, within what borders? What happens to Jerusalem? What about the Jordan Valley? Would land swaps compensate for territory deemed essential by Israel for security? Declaring statehood prematurely prejudges the outcome of negotiations, and that was the position taken by these administrations.”
The French and Saudi-sponsored conference is expected to run through Tuesday.
