linguistic:translation, structural:expansion
Foreign relations

Currently, 146 UN member states (75%) recognize the State of Palestine. Though some do not recognize it, they acknowledge the PLO as the representative of the Palestinian people. The PLO's executive committee acts as the government, empowered by the PNC. It is a full member of the Arab League, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Union for the Mediterranean. Sweden took a significant step in 2013 by upgrading the status of the Palestinian representative office to a full embassy. They became the first EU member state outside the former communist bloc to officially recognize the state of Palestine.