Trump heads to UN General Assembly as future of Palestinian state and Gaza likely to dominate

(NEW YORK) — President Donald Trump and foreign world leaders will meet this week at the United Nations General Assembly where Trump is expected to deliver the first address of his second term to the annual gathering of global leaders on Tuesday — though Trump will largely be isolated from more than half of the member nations and key allies over the war in Gaza.

All eyes will be on Trump, who in recent months has initiated massive cuts to U.S. foreign aid since his return to the White House, eliminating support for U.N. agencies and aid as overseas humanitarian crises continue to grow.

Trump’s appearance at the 80th session of the U.N. General Assembly comes as several prominent world leaders — and key allies — of the U.S. are set to formally recognize Palestinian statehood as international alarm continues to build over the ongoing war and starvation crisis in Gaza.

On Monday, France and Saudi Arabia will hold an international peace conference in support of the two-state solution that will take place in New York. France and several other countries are expected to recognize Palestinian statehood, joining more than 140 countries which have already recognized Palestinian statehood.

Leaders from the United Kingdom, France, and Canada have maintained there should be an end to the war in Gaza, including the immediate release of all remaining hostages, and the understanding that Hamas would no longer be a leading authority in Gaza after the war.

The French have said that 10 countries would formally recognize Palestinian statehood at the meeting — Andorra, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Luxembourg, Portugal, Malta, Britain and San Marino alongside France.

The U.S. will not participate in the conference and was one of only 10 countries who voted against the General Assembly resolution backing the high-level gathering.

Israel, for its part, has vowed to take action in retaliation of the formal recognition, which may include annexing parts of the occupied West Bank.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was unequivocal in rejecting the planned international conference in a statement Sunday.”I have a clear message to those leaders who recognize a Palestinian state after the terrible massacre on October 7th, 2023: You are giving a huge reward to terrorism,” Netanyahu said.

“And I have another message for you: It will not happen. A Palestinian state will not be established west of the Jordan River.”

Critics of the recognition — which include the U.S. and the Israeli governments — have long condemned the plan, saying it only moves to embolden Hamas and further isolate Israel and the Trump administration on the international stage.

U.S. officials have said the action is largely “performative” and “symbolic” and will do nothing to help mend the relationship between the Palestinians and the Israeli government.

“I think much of that is a reaction to several nations around the world deciding to unilaterally declare a Palestinian state,” said Secretary of State Marco Rubio on reports that Israel was seriously debating annexing parts of the West Bank, which some say would be illegal under international law.

“We warned them that we thought that was counterproductive. We actually think its undermined negotiations, because it emboldened Hamas, and we think it undermines future prospects of peace in the region. We thought it was unwise to do that, and I think you’re seeing that as a counterreaction,” Rubio told reporters last week.

The U.S. — Israel’s main ally — has opposed the recognition and last month moved to deny and revoke visas to the Palestinian delegation, including for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas ahead of Monday’s international conference, accusing the Palestinian leadership of undermining peace efforts. The Palestinian state holds permanent observer status at the U.N. and is not a full-blown member state.

But on Friday, the U.N. General Assembly voted overwhelming to allow Abbas to address this week’s gathering of world leaders virtually after the Trump administration declined to grant Abbas a visa. The motion passed by a vote of 145-5 with six abstentions. The U.S. and Israel voted against the motion.

On Sunday, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia formally recognized a Palestinian state — three countries who are some of the U.S. and Israel’s closest allies. The move came after an official state visit from Trump to the United Kingdom, during which he voiced his disapproval of the plan.

Other experts remain wary of the recognition, suggesting that while the acknowledgment of a Palestinian state is a long-overdue decision, it must be accompanied with more concrete action against the Israeli occupation, which launched a ground invasion last week. Such action could include an arms embargo, sanctions and more support for international tribunals investigating Israel’s possible crimes.

Trump is expected to meet with Netanyahu on the sidelines at this year’s UNGA.

Trump is also expected to meet with other foreign leaders throughout the week, including Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who will be a prominent new addition to the gathering. The meeting with Trump will mark their second meeting this year as the Syrian leader confronts the challenges of rebuilding the country after years of civil war under Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

Iran’s nuclear program will also be a top-agenda item this year as sanctions against Tehran that were lifted 10 years ago are set to be reinstated. France, Germany and the United Kingdom moved last month to trigger the “snapback mechanism,” which automatically reimposes all U.N. sanctions that were in effect before the nuclear deal.

Trump will also meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines this week over promised postwar security guarantees, which Zelenskyy has said are critical to resolving the war with Russia. Russian President Vladmir Putin has so far refused to engage in a good faith effort to end the war after almost four years of fighting.

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