Armenia officially recognized Palestine as a state, the Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced today, opposing Israel , who objects to such steps, reported Reuters, quoted by BTA.
The ministry adds that Armenia supports the UN resolution for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and advocates a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
The catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and the ongoing military conflict are among the priority issues on the international political agenda today that require resolution, the statement said. Armenia categorically rejects attacks on civilian infrastructure, violence against civilians, hostage-taking and capture of civilians during the armed conflict and joins the demands of the international community for their release without preconditions.
Armenia joined the UN General Assembly resolutions calling for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. Moreover, Armenia is sincerely interested in the establishment of peace and stability in the Middle East, long-term peace between the Jewish and Palestinian peoples. In various international forums, we have always advocated a peaceful and comprehensive settlement of the Palestinian issue and continue to support a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We are convinced that this is the only way to ensure that Palestinians and Israelis will be able to realize their legitimate aspirations, the Armenian Foreign Ministry said.
On the basis of the above, Armenia reaffirms its commitment to international law, the principles of equality, sovereignty and peaceful coexistence of peoples and recognizes the State of Palestine, concludes the department's statement.
Until recently, nine out of a total of 27 countries in the European Union had recognized the State of Palestine. Eight of them - Malta, Cyprus, the Czech Republic and Slovakia (until 1993 Czechoslovakia), Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Poland - did so before joining the EU, even after Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat declared on 15 November 1988 Palestine for an independent state. In 2014, Sweden became the first country to recognize Palestine after joining the EU. On May 28, Spain, Norway and Ireland joined the countries that recognized Palestine, and on June 4 - Slovenia.