DUBLIN: Ireland said Tuesday it was upgrading the status of the Palestinian diplomatic delegation in Dublin to a mission, becoming the fifth European country to accord it a rank just below embassy.
“The Palestinian delegation will from now on be known as the Palestinian mission,” the spokeswoman for the Irish Foreign Ministry said, in a move swiftly condemned by Israel.
The decision puts Ireland in line with fellow European Union members France, Spain and Portugal, who upgraded the Palestinians’ diplomatic status in July, September and October respectively.
Non-EU member Norway followed in December, in a move which gives the head of the Palestinian diplomatic delegation the rank of ambassador.
At the time, Spain said it acted because of the prospect of an eventual “creation and recognition of a Palestinian state.”
Ireland’s decision drew an angry response from Israel, which condemned Dublin for a “long-standing biased policy on the Middle East.”
“This will only strengthen the Palestinians’ rejection of any return to direct dialogue and peace negotiations,” Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said.
However, the Palestinians hailed the Irish move as “excellent progress.”
“We have been trying to get the recognition of all the states in the EU, but where they are hesitant to do this, they are upgrading the delegation to a mission,” Palestinian foreign minister Riad al-Malki said.
“The Irish will raise our status to that of a mission and we will have our ambassador there. It is more than a mission but less than an embassy,” he said.
Direct peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians began in September last year but broke down just three weeks later with the end of an Israeli moratorium on construction in Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank.
The Palestinians have accused Israel of choosing settlements over peace and said they would now explore other options, including seeking recognition from foreign governments and ultimately the United Nations.
In recent weeks, a string of Latin American governments have announced their recognition of an independent Palestinian state on the borders that existed before the 1967 Middle East war. Brazil led the way late last year, followed by Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, Guyana, Uruguay and, most recently, Peru.
The Palestinian Authority also secured a symbolic victory earlier this month when its diplomatic mission in Washington hoisted its national flag for the first time.
However, the U.S. State Department said the ceremony did not change the status of the representation. –AFP
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(The Daily Star :: Lebanon News :: http://www.dailystar.com.lb)
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