Majdi al-Khaldi, the diplomatic advisor to Palestinian Authority (PA) chairman Mahmoud Abbas, on Monday called on the Canadian government to recognize the “state of Palestine” and to support it in the international arena.
The official PA news agency Wafa reported that in a speech he gave in Abbas’ name at a ceremony held by the PA delegation in Ramallah marking Canada Day, Khaldi praised Canada's support for international law, the two-state solution, the Palestinian people's right to self-determination and its resistance to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
Khaldi also expressed gratitude for Canada's financial support to Palestinian Arab institutions, especially the judicial system.
He noted that Canadian recognition of the “state of Palestine” is especially important at the present time in view of Israeli activity in Jerusalem and the “settlements”.
The Canadian government refrained from supporting US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Israel in December of 2017, though it did not harshly criticize the move as other countries had done.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also made clear that the Canadian embassy in Israel would remain in Tel Aviv and would not be relocated to Jerusalem as the US embassy was.
In contrast to Trudeau’s statement, Conservative leader Andrew Scheer has said his party would follow the US lead and recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel should he be elected prime minister.
Delegates from the Conservative party of Canada last year approved a resolution recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of the state of Israel.