Almost a year after Australia recognised Palestine as an independent and sovereign state, the Albanese government faces an increasingly difficult question: what did recognition actually change?
Recognition was supposed to support Palestinian sovereignty, self-determination and the right of Palestinians to remain on their land. Yet Australia has imposed no meaningful sanctions on Israel, introduced no restrictions on trade with illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, and made no change to the military relationships that help sustain Israel’s occupation.
Instead, Australia remains embedded in the international F-35 production and support network. Senate estimates have revealed dozens of deliveries of Australian-made F-35 parts to Israel since October 2023, exposing the weakness of Foreign Minister Penny Wong’s argument that supplying weapons components is somehow different from supplying weapons.
The unresolved killing of Australian aid worker Zomi Frankcom is also another contradiction. Frankcom was killed by the Israel Defense Forces in Gaza in 2024, yet her death has produced few lasting diplomatic consequences. Australia has recognised the Palestinian state in which she was working, but remains reluctant to confront the occupying power responsible for killing her.
Another contradiction: West Bank. Australia accepts that Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territory are illegal under international law, yet continues to allow trade connected with those settlements. If the settlements are illegal, why should the economic activity sustaining them be treated as legitimate?
Meanwhile, far-right Israeli minister Itamar Ben-Gvir is promoting the supposedly “voluntary” evacuation of Palestinians from Gaza. But removing a population from its homeland under conditions of military destruction, deprivation and coercion is not voluntary migration. It’s a forced displacement – and ethnic cleansing.
The double standard is just as visible at home. Since the Bondi attack, the Australian government has committed hundreds of millions of dollars to antisemitism, education and social-cohesion programs. At the same time, Palestinian communities and critics of Israel face political marginalisation, while proposals associated with antisemitism envoy Jillian Segal threaten to extend their ideological oversight across universities, cultural institutions and public broadcasters such as the ABC and SBS.
This is a a test of Australia’s democracy, political independence and the Albanese government’s willingness to resist powerful vested interests. With public opinion on Israel shifting so decisively, unconditional political support for the Israeli state may also carry growing electoral consequences.
Recognition of Palestine was still an important step for Australia to take last year, helping to break the inertia on Middle East/West Asia policy, and finally joining the overwhelming majority of United Nations members that recognise Palestinian statehood. But recognition should have been the beginning of a new policy, not the end of it.
