The following motion was moved by Deputy Gerry Adams on Tuesday, 9 December 2014:That Dáil Éireann--- notes that:— in 2011, the Irish Government upgraded the status, titles, and functional privileges of the Palestinian Mission to Ireland to close to that of an embassy; — in November 2012, Ireland voted in favour of the United Nations General Assembly motion granting "non-member observer state" status to Palestine; — the long-standing commitment Irish Governments have given to the development of a viable, sovereign Palestinian state, and their support for the achievement of a sovereign State of Palestine existing in peace with its neighbours including the State of Israel; — as of 8 December 2014, 135 countries have formally recognised the State of Palestine, including eight EU member states - the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, Malta, Cyprus and Sweden; — Seanad Éireann, on 22 October 2014, unanimously accepted a motion calling on the Government "to formally recognise the State of Palestine and do everything it can at the international level to help secure a viable two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict"; and — on 30 October 2014, Sweden became the first EU member state to formally recognise the State of Palestine while a member state of the EU;recognises that:— finding a just and lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians, and between Arabs and Israelis in a broader context, is a key element of Irish foreign policy; — the right of Palestinians to self-determination and to have their own state as well as the right of the State of Israel to exist within secure borders are unquestionable; and — continued Israeli settlement construction and extension activities in the West Bank, including in East Jerusalem, as well as the continued expropriation of Palestinian land and demolition of Palestinian property by Israel is illegal and severely threatens the establishment of a viable Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders;concludes that:— the international law criteria for recognition of a Palestinian state have been fulfilled; and — the achievement of a fully independent sovereign State of Palestine is an essential element to the resolution of the Israel-Palestine conflict; and calls on the Government to: — officially recognise the State of Palestine, on the basis of the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as the capital, as established in UN resolutions, as a further positive contribution to securing a negotiated two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; — do all it can to assist in the development of the democratic and state institutions of the Palestinian State; and — do everything it can, at the international level, to help secure an inclusive and viable peace process, and two-state solution, in order to bring about the positive conditions to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

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