Minister Støre says he has decided to upgrade the Palestinian representation in Norway, and announced the news at a press conference held in connection with Palestine’s Prime Minister Salaam Fayyad’s visit to Oslo yesterday.

“This is in recognition of the work undertaken by the autonomous Palestinian authorities,” said Minister Støre.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, several other countries, including France, Spain, Greece, and Portugal, also started upgrading Palestinian representation in August this year, and the World Bank has stated the Palestinian Authority is ready to assume the responsibilities of state.

The ministry has also pointed out this means renegotiating the current agreement with the Palestinian Liberation Authority (PLO). Under the new accord, the Palestinian representation will be referred to as ‘The Mission of Palestine’, instead of its current title, ‘The General Delegation of Palestine’, and hold the rank of Ambassador.

“We are grateful to Norway having done this, and look forward to the day the embassy represents a full state,” Prime Minister Fayyad told NRK.

The two leaders also signed an agreement on Norwegian financial aid for education projects in the Palestinian territories.

Norway chairs the Ad-hoc Liaison Committee’s (AHLC) donor group, responsible for coordinating the international community’s support towards building Palestinian institutions in the run-up to a two-state solution.

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