Slovenia officially recognizes a Palestinian state after parliament votes in favor

Slovenia on Tuesday officially recognized a Palestinian state, after its parliament voted overwhelmingly in favor of the move, The Associated Press reported.

Slovenia’s government endorsed a motion last week to recognize a Palestinian state, and had sent the proposal to parliament for final approval, which was needed for the decision to take effect.

Parliament on Tuesday voted 52 for with no one against recognition in the 90-seat parliament. The remaining lawmakers were not present for the vote.

Slovenia’s decision came days after Spain, Norway and Ireland formally recognized a Palestinian state, following through with a declaration to do so the previous week.

“We started talking with our allies about the recognition of Palestine in February this year,” Slovenia’s Prime Minister Robert Golob told lawmakers before Tuesday’s vote. “At the time, the assessment was — the time is not yet ripe ... we warned that we, Europe, have a ... duty to act.”

The ruling coalition led by Golob holds a comfortable majority in Slovenia’s assembly and the vote was expected to be a formality.

The Palestinian Authority (PA) has long urged countries to recognize “Palestine” as a means of bypassing direct talks with Israel.

While several countries have recognized “Palestine” in recent years, those moves were symbolic ones that have little, if any, actual diplomatic effect.