Japan PM Condemns Israeli Ground Operation in Gaza, Says Recognition of Palestinian State a ‘Matter of When’

By Akihisa Ota / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

13:28 JST, September 24, 2025

NEW YORK — Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba strongly condemned Israel’s ground operation in the Palestinian territory of Gaza during his speech at the U.N. General Debate on Tuesday night and demanded an immediate halt to the offensive.

Japan will “take a new approach” if Israel’s actions close off the path to a two-state solution, Ishiba said at the session of the U.N. General Assembly.

Israel’s expansion of the ground operation “significantly worsens the humanitarian crisis and is absolutely unacceptable to our country,” the prime minister said. “We condemn it in the strongest possible terms.” He also stressed that “it is absolutely unforgivable to overlook” the suffering of the people in Gaza.

Regarding the two-state solution — the coexistence of Israeli and Palestinian states that Japan has consistently supported — Ishiba said the situation is in a “very serious and worrying phase.” The question of recognizing a Palestinian state is “not a matter of ‘whether,’ but ‘when,’” he said.

The Japanese government has postponed recognizing a Palestinian state for the time being, in part to consider its relationship with the United States, but it is considering the possibility of future recognition.

Ishiba also called in his speech for reform of the United Nations as it celebrates its 80th anniversary. Citing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, he said the U.N. Security Council “has not been fully functioning” and called for an expansion of both permanent and non-permanent member states.

The prime minister also touched on Japan’s journey over the 80 years since the end of World War II, emphasizing that “the people of Asia showed a spirit of generosity in accepting Japan after the war.”

He looked back at Japan’s commitment to “strive for the realization of lasting world peace under a pledge not to fight a war” and called for “solidarity over division and tolerance over confrontation.” Ishiba also expressed his resolve for Japan to lead the world as a “country that is needed by the world.”