The Netherlands plans to recognise a Palestinian state “at a later stage”, caretaker foreign affairs minister David van Weel has said, but would not commit to a specific timetable.

The Dutch government is lagging behind other nations such as the UK, France and Canada, all of whom have taken the step in recent days.

Van Weel told a United Nations conference in New York that the Netherlands intended to recognise a Palestinian state “as part of a political process that has yet to begin”.

He said the Netherlands remained committed to a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine in the long term. “We need to end the constant violence that Palestinians and Israelis have suffered for so long,” Van Weel said.

The timetable is likely to be part of the discussions to form the next government following the general election on October 29. Parliament last month voted against a motion to recognise a Palestinian state.

Other countries have said they are no longer to wait for negotiations to begin on a two-state solution now that Israel has invaded Gaza city and published plans to build more settlements on the West Bank. Canadian prime minister Mark Carney said in July that “this approach is no longer tenable.”

French president Emmanuel Macron, announcing his country’s decision on Monday, said that “we must also guarantee the demilitarisation of Hamas and secure and rebuild Gaza”.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is due to address the UN on Friday, has vowed a Palestinian state “will not happen”. His government is expected to announce further plans to build settlements when he returns from New York.

The United States has criticised other nations for recognising Palestinian statehood, while the three other members of the G7, Germany, Italy and Japan, have no plans to do so.