Denmark, Finland to upgrade Palestinian diplomatic status

COPENHAGEN (AFP) -- Denmark and Finland plan to upgrade the status of their respective Palestinian representative offices in Copenhagen and Helsinki to that of an embassy, the Danish foreign ministry said Saturday.

"It is with satisfaction that we announce our joint intention to work with the Palestinians to be able to upgrade the status of the Palestinian missions in Copenhagen and Helsinki," the foreign ministers of Finland and Denmark, Villy Soevndal and Erkki Tuomioja, said in a joint statement.

The changes are expected to be implemented sometime in 2013, it said.

The move would "not entail a formal bilateral recognition of a sovereign Palestinian state by Denmark and Finland," the statement said.

"Palestine is in a phase of state-building, and many challenges remain for president (Mahmoud) Abbas to handle before we can recognize Palestine formally as a state," it said. more

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