President of Palestine Mr. Mahmoud Abbas paid his first official visit to Turkey at the invitation of President Abdullah Gül since Palestine was granted a non-member observer state status in the UN at the end of the UN General Assembly meeting on November 29, 2012.

As part of the visit, Foreign Minister Davutoğlu was received by Palestinian President Mr. Abbas on 11 December 2012. At the meeting where Minister of Foreign Affairs of Palestine, Mr. Riad Al Malki and Palestinian chief negotiator Saib Erakat also attended, possible steps to be taken at the UN following the decision to upgrade Palestine’s status to non-member observer state, development of the relations between Turkey and Palestine, reconciliation process in Palestine as well as the situation in Syria were discussed.

Expressing his thanks to Turkey for the support given at the UN General Assembly vote, President Mr. Abbas mentioned that the Turkish Consulate General in Jerusalem was the oldest diplomatic mission in Jerusalem and underlined the gratitude of the Palestine people for the presence of the Turkish Consulate General in Jerusalem.

Turkish Consulate General in Jerusalem which was opened in 1925 in one of the first Turkish diplomatic representations.