Uruguay recognizes independent Palestine

[Judi Lynn]

Uruguay recognizes independent Palestine
16 March 2011 | 03:08 | FOCUS News Agency

Montevideo. Uruguay on Tuesday announced its recognition of Palestine as an independent state, following the lead of nearly all other South American nations, Foreign Minister Luis Almagro said, AFP reported.

Uruguayan President Jose Mujica wrote the Palestinian ambassador in Argentina, Salida Muaggat, to announce the decision by Montevideo to "recognize the Palestinian state as an independent sovereign state" consistent with UN Resolution 242, which called for return of territories Israel seized during the Six-Day War.

Mujica in his letter expressed the "firm commitment of Uruguay to the peace process in the Middle East and to the gradual strengthening of bonds between Uruguay with the Palestinian people and the Palestinian National Authority."

One hundred nations already recognize Palestine, including 11 of 12 South American nations. Colombia, a close US ally in the region, is the lone holdout.

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