Later Sunday, Portuguese Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel announced from the U.N. that his country was also formally recognizing a Palestinian state. Britain, Canada, Australia and Portugal formally recognized Palestine as a state on Sept. 21, in a move that put them at odds with the United States. “A Palestinian state will not be established,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement. More than 140 countries already recognize Palestinian statehood, and the U.N. granted the governing Palestinian Authority nonmember observer status in 2012. Britain, additionally, had a special responsibility to recognize Palestinian statehood given its historic role, Buttu said.