Today, Wednesday, President Mahmoud Abbas received, at the presidential residence in the city of Ramallah, Irish Minister of Foreign Affairs and Defense Michael Martin and the accompanying delegation.

President Abbas briefed the guest minister on the latest developments in the Palestinian territories, and the continued aggression of the Israeli occupation authorities against the Palestinian people, their land and their sanctities.

The President stressed that the continuation of the unilateral actions of the Israeli occupation authorities, in addition to the continuation of settler terrorism, contributes to the tension of the atmosphere and dragging the region into the square of escalation and violence, the results of which no one can predict, which requires effective international intervention to stop the deterioration and implement the resolutions of international legitimacy.

President Abbas praised the level of bilateral relations between the two countries, stressing the aspiration of the State of Palestine to strengthen and develop these relations in the interest of the friendly Palestinian and Irish peoples, appreciating the support provided by Ireland in the field of scholarships for Palestinian students.

The President stressed the importance of the role that Ireland can play through its membership in the European Union, to provide support for the political process in accordance with international legitimacy, and urged Europe to support the Palestinian endeavor in the United Nations in order to obtain full membership in the United Nations, in order to prepare the atmosphere for a political horizon that ends The Israeli occupation of the State of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital on the 1967 borders.

In turn, the Irish minister affirmed his country's firm position in support of achieving a political settlement on the basis of international legitimacy and the two-state solution.

He pointed out that Ireland will continue to provide support to the Palestinian people, especially in the field of scholarships for Palestinian students.

The meeting was attended by a member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Ziyad Abu Amr, Palestinian Sharia Judge Mahmoud al-Habash, and the President of the Presidential Court, Intisar Abu Amara.