Palestine and Armenia formally announced on Saturday the establishment of diplomatic relations aimed at strengthening bilateral ties at all levels, according to a statement by the office of Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa on the sidelines of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly in New York.
Mustafa signed a joint declaration with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan on formalising diplomatic relations between the State of Palestine and the Republic of Armenia. He highly praised Armenia’s recognition of the State of Palestine.
The Prime Minister expressed gratitude for Armenia’s positive vote on the resolutions concerning Palestine. Armenia’s recognition of Palestine is considered as a peace investment and a practical step towards supporting the two-state solution aimed at ending the Israeli occupation and establishing an independent Palestinian state.
On 21 June, the Armenian Foreign Ministry officially recognised the State of Palestine, making Armenia the 149th country to take this significant step. Earlier, Spain, Norway and Ireland, also recognised the State of Palestine following Israel’s devastating war on the Gaza Strip that began last October.
In the meantime, Israel has continued its brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by Palestinian group Hamas on 7 October last year, ignoring a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire.
Some 41,600 people, mostly women and children, have lost their lives and more than 96,200 have suffered injuries in Gaza since the war began. The Israeli offensive has displaced almost the entire population of the territory amid an ongoing blockade that has led to severe shortages of food, clean water and medicine.
