Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Friday that he will announce next Wednesday the date of Spain's recognition of the Palestinian state, ruling out that this recognition will take place on May 21 but rather "in later days."

"We are coordinating with other countries to be able to issue a joint declaration and a joint recognition," the socialist Sanchez said in an interview with the "Sixta" television channel to explain why this recognition did not go ahead on Tuesday, the date that was mentioned by European Union Foreign Minister Josep Borrell.

Borrell indicated last week in an interview with a Spanish radio that the Spanish Foreign Minister, Jose Manuel Albarez, informed him that the date of May 21 had been chosen for the announcement.

Sanchez did not specify the countries with which his government is currently holding discussions on this issue.

In March, the leaders of Spain, Ireland, Slovenia, and Malta announced in a joint statement that they were ready to recognize a Palestinian state.

Irish Foreign Minister Michael Martin confirmed on Tuesday that his country would recognize the Palestinian state “before the end” of May, without specifying a date for that.

The majority of the 193 member states of the United Nations (137 countries according to a Palestinian census) have so far recognized the Palestinian state.

Speaking about the situation in Gaza, Sanchez again criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday.

When asked whether what was happening in Gaza was considered genocide, Sanchez avoided answering, but said three times that he “had serious doubts” about Israel’s respect for human rights.

He made a comparison between the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the Israeli attack on Gaza, saying, “In Ukraine, logically, the territorial integrity of the country cannot be violated as Russia does.”

He added, "In Palestine, what we cannot do is disrespect international humanitarian law, which is what Israel is doing."

He pointed out that Madrid's policy "is appreciated by the international community, whether from the point of view of the Ukrainian government or from the point of view of the Arab community."