The Palestinian people have waged a constant struggle to win back their lost territory and found an independent state over the past decades since Israel occupied their land.

In the course of this they declared the founding of the state of Palestine with al-Quds as the capital and adopted the declaration of independence at the 19th extraordinary session of the Palestinian national council on November 15 1988.

The Palestine Liberation Organization and Israel signed a declaration of principle on the autonomy of the Palestinians in September 1993 and an agreement on the Palestinians’ exercise of autonomy in the Gaza Strip and Jericho in May 1994.

Palestine gained an observer status at the UN in November 2012 and hoisted its flag at the UN headquarters in September 2015. It got its full membership of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization in 2011 and joined the international criminal police organization in 2017.

The facts are an expression of growing international support for and solidarity with the cause of the Palestinian people for establishing an independent state.

This year, heightened activities have been conducted to achieve national unity in the country.

The second Palestinian national dialogue meeting was held in Cairo, Egypt, last mid-January. What drew special attention was that the meeting brought together all political parties and factional forces of Palestine including Fatah, Hamas and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine which had been antagonistic and hostile to each other due to divergence of opinion and internal discord.

The participants had a serious discussion about all national issues and the danger facing the country and agreed on pooling their efforts to resolve pending issues so as to ensure transparent and fair parliamentary elections reflecting the aspirations of the Palestinian people. They then signed a constitution of honour for guaranteeing successful elections of this year. This has instilled fresh hope into the Palestinians who try to prevent internal division and build an independent state by united efforts.

The Korean people have rendered positive support and encouragement to the Palestinian counterpart in their struggle.

The DPRK established diplomatic relations with the Palestine Liberation Organization on April 13 1966. A PLO mission was established in the country in April 1975 and elevated into an embassy on November 24 1988.

To mark the anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, the DPRK extends full support to the cause of justice of the Palestinian people.