RAMALLAH, West Bank — During a joint press conference held Jan. 22 with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini at the EU headquarters in Brussels, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called on European Union member states to recognize the State of Palestine.

Abbas’ adviser for diplomatic affairs Majdi al-Khalidi, who accompanied the president to Brussels, told Al-Monitor, “President Abbas asked the EU countries to recognize the State of Palestine as soon as possible.” According to Khalidi, Abbas also expressed the Palestinians’ desire to find a new negotiations formula through the Quartet and other countries such as Japan or China, or to set up a new mechanism involving permanent members of the UN Security Council along with other countries.

The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs “is making contacts with a number of European countries to recognize the State of Palestine, and we hope that these efforts will be fruitful,” Khalidi said, adding, “While such recognition will raise the Palestinians’ hope of finding a political solution, it would not serve as a substitute for negotiations but help push them forward.”

The Palestinian Authority (PA) has declared its commitment to negotiations with Israel provided they are carried out under the auspices of international parties, not the United States, in announcing the end of the Americans’ exclusive role in the peace process. And although the EU supports the two-state solution and opposes US President Donald Trump's decision on Jerusalem, it will not be able to replace the United States in sponsoring the peace process.