(MENAFN) Saudi Arabia and Qatar on Thursday welcomed the recent announcements by Canada and Malta to formally recognize a Palestinian state during upcoming United Nations General Assembly meetings in September. Both Gulf nations called on the international community to follow their lead.

In a statement, the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it viewed the declarations from Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela as “positive steps that strengthen the path toward a two-state solution and reflect the international community’s consensus on ending the suffering of the Palestinian people.”

Riyadh reiterated its longstanding call for countries around the world “to take serious steps in support of peace.”

Qatar issued a parallel statement through its Foreign Ministry, describing the recognitions as “important milestones consistent with international legitimacy and relevant UN Security Council resolutions.”

The Qatari government said the decisions represented “significant backing for the Palestinian people’s legitimate rights to self-determination and the establishment of an independent state on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.”

The statement also noted that these developments aligned with the conclusions of this week’s UN conference on the two-state solution. The summit, notably boycotted by both the United States and Israel, urged Israel to pull its forces from the Gaza Strip and hand control of the territory over to the Palestinian Authority.

In its final declaration, the conference pushed for full UN membership for Palestine, a move that would elevate its current status as a non-member observer—a designation it has held since 2012.

Qatar once again urged nations that have not yet recognized Palestinian statehood “to take similar steps that demonstrate commitment to international law and uphold the Palestinian people’s historic and legitimate rights to their land.”

According to UN records, 148 of the organization's 193 member states currently recognize Palestine, which was first declared by Palestinian leaders in exile in 1988.

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