More Recognize Palestine: Is There a Formalized Consul in the Future of a Member State Palestine?
Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): The Good Men Project
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2025/10/01
On September 21, 2025, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia, then Portugal, recognized the State of Palestine akin to the State of Israel. An orientation around a two-State solution within the United Nations.
Something recognized amongst a majority of the Member States of the United Nations, as recently as September 12 with a condemnation of Hamas (142 votes in favour, 10 against, 12 abstentions). Other countries have recognized the State of Palestine, recently, too: France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Malta, Slovenia, and Mexico.
Some estimates put recognition of the State of Palestine at 147-151 of the 193 Member States of the UN. The vast majority of the world’s Member States recognize Palestinian statehood. Recognition is not actualization. These four new additions change the frame even further into these long-term historical trends towards a two-State solution.
In 2011, Palestine joined UNESCO and acceded to the International Criminal Court in 2015. In 2015, the Rome Statute entered into force for Palestine. The two-State frame of the UN and most capitals tends to reference the 1967 lines of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza. Capitals typically upgrade missions from a delegation to an embassy with a Palestinian recognized head of state. Most states emphasize the PLO, and international recognition usually condemns Hamas, as per September 12, 2025.
In 2024, the UN rights were expanded for Palestine; the UN General Assembly claimed Palestine as “qualified” for full UN membership and expanded GA participation rights, while not being a full UN member. Members require Security Council approval. The US has veto. Therefore, US blockade prevents this.
If this continues, then, potentially, a State of Palestine could be formally recognized outside of the 2012 status recognition at the UN as a non-member observer state on the same level as the Holy See (the Vatican), while having its expanded rights in 2024. If that happens, would we see diplomatic representation as we see with consuls? There are two types. Those with an office, Consul General. Those without one, Honorary Consul.
In Asia, Israel is represented by Gadi Harpaz in Chengdu, Alex Goldman Shayman in Guangzhou, Amir Lati in Hong Kong, and Ravit Baer in Shanghai, all serving as Consuls General in China. In India, the Consuls General are Orli Weitzman in Bengaluru and Kobbi Shoshani in Mumbai. In Türkiye, Rami Hatan serves as Consul General in Istanbul, while in the United Arab Emirates, Liron Zaslansky is the Consul General in Dubai.
Across Europe, Israel’s representation includes Adamos A. Varnava, the Honorary Consul in Nicosia, Cyprus, and Leon Glikman, the Honorary Consul in Tallinn, Estonia. In Germany, Talya Lador-Fresher is the Consul General in Munich. In Russia, Olga Slov serves as Consul General in Saint Petersburg. In Ukraine, Oleg Vyshniakov is the Honorary Consul in Lviv. In the United Kingdom, Stanley Lovatt serves as Honorary Consul in Glasgow.
In North America, Israel is represented in Canada by Eliaz Luf, Consul General in Montréal, and Idit Shamir, Consul General in Toronto. In Mexico, the Honorary Consuls are Edoardo Gurgo Salice in Cancún, Marcos Shemaria Zlotorynski in Guadalajara, Miguel Otto Schwarz in Monterrey, and Gregorio Goldstein Isaacson in Tijuana. In the United States, Consuls General include Eitan Weiss in Atlanta, Benny Sharoni in Boston, Yinam Cohen in Chicago, Livia Link-Raviv in Houston, Israel Bachar in Los Angeles, Maor Elbaz-Starinsky in Miami, Ofir Akunis in New York, and Marco Sermoneta in San Francisco.
In South America, Israel’s consular presence is represented by Rafael Erdreich, Consul General in São Paulo, Brazil. In Africa, Robert Stravens serves as Honorary Consul of Israel in Victoria, Seychelles. In the Caribbean, Flora Gunn serves as Honorary Consul of Israel in Kingstown, St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Many general consuls and honorary consuls exist for Israel. The first Israeli consulate abroad was in New York in 1948 after independence. Arthur Lourie was the inaugural Consul General. It was a crucial office for mobilization of political support to North America on behalf of Israel.
Honorary consuls as an institution were developed later and often in smaller European and Latin American states. These handled cultural, diaspora, and trade, affairs. They were not career diplomats. They were influential citizens, often Jewish community leaders embedded to promote Israel’s interests.
For the limited statehood at the UN and recognition internationally, for Palestine, there is, in fact, a limited number of consul generals in Egypt (Wafiq Abu Sidu), Iraq [Kurdistan Region] (Mahr Karaki), Saudi Arabia (Mahmoud Yahya Al-Asadi), Türkiye (Hanaa Abu Ramadan), and United Arab Emirates (Mohammad As’ad).
Which raises the original questions, if things continue to proceed in this overwhelming direction–without judgment but an assessment of the large-scale vector over time, who will be the General Consul Lourie of a possible future full Member State Palestine? On that possibility, it would still be another 77 years on top of that to get to the current stature of the consuls working for better representation of Palestine in an equivalent capacity.
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