Indonesia had welcomed the Palestinian Declaration of Independence by the Palestinian National Council in Algiers, Algeria, and had recognized the State of Palestine on 16 November 1988. A year later both Indonesia and Palestine signed Joint Communique on the Commencement of Indonesia-Palestine Diplomatic Relations at Ambassadorial Level, on 19 October 1989. The signing was conducted by Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, Ali Alatas, and an official of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Farouk Kaddoumi.