Zagreb, 23 September 2025 (Hina/MIA) — Croatian President Zoran Milanović said Monday in New York that Croatia should recognize a Palestinian state, emphasizing that this was not a reward for the Palestinians but their right, the President's Office said in a statement.

"Palestine should be recognized; Croatia should do it too. When that happens depends on the proposal from the Government to Parliament, and I will support it," Milanović said after participating in the High-level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution, held at the UN headquarters in New York.

"I agreed with what was said and we supported the declaration," Milanović added.

He also commented on France's recognition of Palestine, announced at the conference by French President Macron.

"France has recognized Palestine; it is another state that has recognized a Palestinian state. This is not a reward or concession to the Palestinians, it is their right. This right stems from UN Resolution 181 of November 1947. The entire tragedy of Palestine and the Palestinian people cannot be viewed except in the full context of events over the past hundred years," the Croatian president said, adding that "Palestine should have had its own state a long time ago."

Asked by reporters whether recognizing Palestine would change anything, particularly after the Israeli prime minister said a Palestinian state would not be established, Milanović said: "Israel will continue to kill; it is a murderous regime that has concluded it can do this as long as it has a protector."

On what he expects from US President Donald Trump's speech at the UN, Milanović said he expects "nothing".

"He will be against recognizing Palestine; that is clear. Why this is so is harder for me to understand. How is it in the interest of the US to support the Zionist regime in this way? Until 1991, I understand – because of the Cold War. But everything that happened after that has been to the detriment of the US. It does not serve America well, especially in terms of security."

"As for Hamas, it was created by Israel. Just as the Mujahideen were, in a way, created by the US administration, Israel – to suppress Fatah, the organization to which (Yasser) Arafat belonged and which had significant legitimacy among Arab and Palestinian populations – created Hamas, which is the product of Israeli intelligence services," Milanović added.

According to the statement, Croatia joined the final document on Sept. 5 under the direction of the president, which was subsequently endorsed by the Croatian government.

The conference was held at the initiative of France and Saudi Arabia to revive the political process with the aim of establishing peace in the Middle East and a two-state solution in which Israel and Palestine would live in peace, security and internationally recognized borders.

The New York Declaration is significant because a large group of UN member states, including many Arab countries, for the first time unequivocally condemned the Hamas attacks of Oct. 7, 2023, as well as Israeli military operations in Gaza that caused civilian casualties and a humanitarian catastrophe.

The declaration is based on the view that lasting peace in the Middle East can only be achieved through a political solution, not war or occupation, and calls on all parties to reject violence.