A geographically predefined Palestinian state must be governed by the Palestinian Authority - not by Islamist group Hamas - and should be "part of peace strategy", according to Italy's foreign minister Antonio Tajani.
“What is the state of Palestine? It is not clear what it is: is it Gaza or the West Bank," Tajani told the Coffee Break programme on TV channel La7 on Wednesday.
"We first want it to be identified geographically, under the rule of the PA and not Hamas terrorists," Tajani said.
Italy wants to recognise a Palestinian state but it must recognise Israel and be recognised by Israel, Tajani underlined.
"A Palestinian state must be part of a strategy that leads to peace," he said.
Italy is in favour of a United Nations (peacekeeping) mission if this is requested "by parties involved in building a Palestinian state", Tajani stated.
"We are ready to send members of the Italian military. This could be the (paramilitary) Carabinieri (police) who might train PA police force," he continued.
"Or it could be real contingent under the UN flag, just as there is in Lebanon," Tajani said, referring to the UNIFIL peacekeeping force, to which Italy contributes over 1,000 troops.
