(Washington Free Beacon)—The upcoming two-state solution summit cohosted by France and Saudi Arabia is shaping up to be an “embarrassing” flop, with just around 50 countries expected to send representatives, according to a State Department source.
French president Emmanuel Macron has billed the summit, scheduled to start on Monday, as a major step “toward recognizing Palestine.” But insiders say the turnout is weak, with less than a third of the countries that already recognize a Palestinian state expected to show up.
“The conference is embarrassing for them. They’ve got 50-some-odd countries signed up,” a State Department official told the Washington Free Beacon. “There’s 150 countries that already recognize Palestine.”
“You’d figure [they] should be able to get at least 150 plus the ones [they’re] trying to get to recognize,” said the source, adding that slated participants include non-democratic nations such as Russia, China, and Cuba.
The level of diplomatic representation among attending nations is also reportedly lacking. While French foreign affairs minister Jean-Noël Barrot is hosting the summit, many of the participating countries will not be sending equivalent counterparts.
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