The Greek parliament made a unanimous decision on Tuesday to recognise the Palestinian state, coinciding with Mahmoud Abbas’ official visit to Greece.
The Greek parliament has recognised the Palestine as an independent state, during an official visit to Greece by Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas.
The unanimous decision announced on Tuesday will see Greece change ‘PA [Palestinian Authority]’ to ‘Palestine’ in all of its official documentation.
While Palestine has been recognised by the Greek parliament, it has yet to be recognised by the Greek state.
The move has quickly received criticism however from the Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely.
He claimed that the decision ultimately “leads nowhere” and has “no practical significance”.
In recognised the independent Palestinian state, Greece joins Sweden who also recognised the state last year with the first embassy opening in Stockholm in January 2015.
Palestinian statehood has also been recognised by France, the UK and the Vatican but with restrictions that do not legally require them to take any action as a result.
While in September, the UN raised the Palestinian for the first time in the headquarters’ history as a symbolic gesture.
Source: RT News
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