RAMALLAH, September 24, 2026 (WAFA) — Vice President of the State of Palestine Hussein Al-Sheikh today received the European Union's new Representative for the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Ambassador Andreas Wiedler, accompanied by Head of the Political Section at the EU Representative Office Johan Friedborn Larsson and EU media officer Shadi Othman.
Al-Sheikh welcomed Wiedler on the occasion of assuming his new post, expressing appreciation for the European Union’s positions in support of the political process, the State of Palestine and the Palestinian people, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, and reform efforts.
During the meeting, Al-Sheikh briefed the EU delegation on the difficult political, security and economic conditions in the occupied West Bank amid escalating colonist violence and settlement expansion, Israeli control over Area C, increasing checkpoints and closures, and the continued withholding of Palestinian tax revenues.
Al-Sheikh reaffirmed that the Palestinian reform program will continue despite these challenges, particularly in the political, financial and judicial fields, describing reform as a national priority aimed at strengthening state institutions and the rule of law.
He stressed the importance of holding elections as a national political issue and a necessity for preserving the unity of the Palestinian people and territory, including the unity of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, as well as Palestinian legislation and institutions. He also emphasized the need to ensure transparency and integrity throughout the electoral process.
Al-Sheikh further stressed the importance of prioritizing the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the need for the Palestinian National Authority to resume its responsibilities in the Strip in a manner that preserves the unity of the Palestinian political, geographical and legal system.
Meanwhile, Ambassador Wiedler affirmed the EU’s readiness to support the holding of elections and stressed the importance of reform. He also reaffirmed continued European efforts to support the Palestinian reform program and strengthen Palestinian institutions, as well as continued communication and coordination with the Palestinian side.
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