Arab League chief urges Spain to back Palestine at UN

The Arab League’s secretary-general has called on Spain to support the Palestinian bid for full UN membership. (File/AFP)

CAIRO: The Arab League’s secretary-general has called on Spain to support the Palestinian bid for full UN membership, as leaders prepare a new diplomatic drive for recognition.
Ahmed Aboul Gheit’s spokesman said he had met Spain’s Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares in Madrid to discuss issues of common interest and ways to advance relations.
Their meeting came as Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, prepares to speak at the UN General Assembly on Sept. 23 in a new campaign to obtain full membership.
Aboul Gheit’s spokesman said Albares showed interest in the Palestinian issue, the Libyan crisis, and the global repercussions of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. 
Albares said on Twitter: “Spain attaches great importance to the existing relations with the League of Arab States and its member states. We are working together to address global challenges and ensure peace, stability, and common prosperity.
“I conveyed our desire to move forward in strengthening bonds of friendship and cooperation and to work together to confront global challenges and advance the Euro-Arab dialogue during Spain’s presidency of the European Union.”
Arab ambassadors accredited to Spain were also present at the meeting, with whom Aboul Gheit discussed the agenda for the next Arab Summit, to be held in Algeria in November, and their assessment of current Arab-Spanish relations.