Ireland’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Defense Micheal Martin has reiterated his country’s position on the recognition of a Palestinian state but said there were significant challenges in place.

“There are other people who don’t want this recognition to happen,” he said during a joint news conference with his Egyptian counterpart, Sameh Shoukry in Cairo.  

“And they have been endeavoring to delay, delay, delay for years, and our government at the outset said that we would consider recognition, we’re disposed to recognition and we said that we do it when we felt that the timing is optimal,” Martin said. 

Since 1988, 139 out of 193 United Nations member states have recognized Palestinian statehood.