A Swedish parliamentary committee claimed that the country’s recognition of Palestine last year violated the nation’s constitution, The Times of Israel reported Wednesday.

On Tuesday, the Riksdag’s Committee on the Constitution published its annual paper [Swedish], which lists several instances in which the center-left government of Prime Minister Stefan Loefven acted improperly, including how it recognized Palestine. …

Rather, the report laments that Loefven declared his intention to recognize a Palestinian state before discussing the matter with parliament’s Advisory Council on Foreign Affairs or with the European Union.

On October 3, in his inaugural speech, the newly elected prime minister said that a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict required mutual recognition. “Sweden will therefore recognize the State of Palestine,” he declared.

Also on October 3, newly appointed Foreign Minister Margot Walström ordered all the country’s diplomatic missions to refer to the “State of Palestine.” However, the first meeting of the Advisory Council on Foreign Affairs, which is chaired by the king and attended by legislators, was not held until the end of the month.

“Under Swedish law, no foreign policy decision whatsoever should be determined without thorough preparation, and without going to our Advisory Council on Foreign Affairs,” MP Tuve Skånberg, an opposition politician who is a member of the Christian Democrats, explained to the Times.

In response to the Swedish government’s move, Israel withdrew its ambassador from the Scandinavian country.

[Photo: Eric Kilby / Flickr ]