After Brazil’s decision to recognise a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders, the President of Argentina, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, on December 5 confirmed that she would also recognise an independent Palestine with the same parameters. The announcement was made by a phone call to the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in which Kirchner added that her recognition was not just a political gesture, but a moral stand. The General Secretary of the Palestine Liberation Organisation, Yasser Abed Rabbo, said Argentina’s gesture is a sign that the previous decision made by Brazil has encouraged other Latin American countries and hoped also other countries may add on.
Brazil announced its official recognition of a Palestinian state on December 3, responding to a request sent by Abbas on November 24, through a letter from the Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to Abbas. Lula stressed “the need to achieve the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people and to create a secure, democratic and economically viable state, coexisting in peace with Israel.” More than 100 countries have already recognised an independent Palestine within its 1967 borders, including all Arab countries, most African nations and part of the new Asian economic powers, such as China and India.