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Source: http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=191760
Does the PA Fulfill the Criteria for an Independent State?
(Jerusalem Post) Dan Izenberg - According to the 1933 Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States, a state must possess a permanent population, a defined territory, a government and a capacity to enter into relationships with other states. There is nothing in international law to prevent the Palestinian Authority from unilaterally declaring itself an independent state. The question is whether other states will recognize it as such. Dore Gold, a former Israeli ambassador to the UN and current head of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, says that states will, at least in theory, have difficulty recognizing a Palestinian state because it does not meet key criteria of the convention. For example, the Palestinians themselves are in disagreement over what the territory of Palestine should be. Secondly, the PA does not effectively govern many of the Palestinian parts of the West Bank because, according to the Oslo Accords, it shares many responsibilities with Israel. Furthermore, it has no control over Gaza. Another problem is that, according to the Oslo Accords, an international agreement that is still binding, the PA is prohibited from conducting its own foreign policy.