French President Macron Urges US To Revise Decisions Regarding Palestinian Visa

French President Emmanuel Macron. (Wikimedia Commons/IAEA Imagebank)

French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday said the United States' decision not to grant visas to Palestinian officials for the upcoming United Nations General Assembly in New York was "unacceptable" and should be canceled.

"We call for this decision to be canceled and for Palestinian representatives to be ensured in accordance with the Host State Agreement," President Macron said on social media X.

President Macron made the comments after speaking with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince, who will co-chair the Two-State Solution Conference in New York on September 22.

"Our goal is clear: to garner the widest international support for the Two-State Solution, the only way to fulfill the legitimate aspirations of both the Israeli people and the Palestinians," President Macron said.

"There is no offensive effort, annexation, or forced transfer of residents that will thwart the momentum we have created with the Crown Prince, the momentum that has been followed by many partners," he said.

Last week, Washington said it would not allow Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and a number of other parties to go to New York, where some US allies would recognize Palestine as a country.

As previously reported, the US State Department last week announced that Foreign Minister Marco Rubio refused and revoked visas for Palestinian officials ahead of next month's UN General Assembly.

The move comes a month after the State Department first announced it would continue the policy, which appears to be being implemented, but again did not mention which individuals would be banned.

Justifying this seemingly unprecedented move, the State Department's announcement stated, "It is in our national security interest to hold the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Palestinian Authority (PA) accountable for their non-compliance with their commitments, and for undermining the prospects for peace", quoted from The Times of Israel.

Prohibiting world leaders from attending high-level weeks of annual General Assemblys seems to violate US commitments to the United Nations.

However, the State Department said it had complied with these requirements because it would continue to allow the Palestinian delegation already in New York to attend the event by granting visa relief to the diplomats.

"Before PLO and PA can be considered peace partners, they must consistently reject terrorism including the October 7 massacre and end terrorism incitement in the field of education, as required by US law and as promised by PLO," the statement said.