September 20, 2025

Japanese Communist Party lawmaker Tamura Takaaki on September 19 at a House of Representatives Budget Committee meeting criticized the government decision to hold off on recognizing a Palestinian state.

In this regard, Tamura brought up a recent Kyodo News report which claims that the U.S. side requested the Japanese government to forgo the recognition.

Foreign Minister Iwaya Takeshi replied, “No request was made by the U.S.,” and said that the issue is not whether to recognize a Palestinian state, but when to do so. Tamura countered that in order to stop Israel’s campaign of genocide in Gaza, Japan should now decide to recognize Palestine as a state.

Tamura noted that the Japanese government has played a part in drafting the “New York Declaration on the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution (New York Declaration)” which states that to recognize Palestine as a sovereign state is vital for realizing the two-state solution and that the two-state solution is the only way to resolve the issue. He also pointed out that the UN General Assembly on September 12 adopted a resolution endorsing the declaration with support from 142, or over 70%, of the member states including Japan.

Tamura pointed out that the Japanese government not only got involved in drawing up the “New York Declaration” but also voted for the UNGA resolution supporting the declaration. He said, “Nevertheless, the government decided to postpone recognition of a Palestinian state, which is highly contradictory. It is unacceptable for the government to give in to the demands of President Trump.”

The JCP lawmaker strongly demanded that Japan promptly recognize the state of Palestine to prevent Israel from continuing its lawless acts, such as genocide, in Gaza.