A few months after Arafat's official visit to Vienna, Austria granted the P.L.O. the right to appoint an official representative to the Government of Austria. This implied a diplomatic status and a recognition of the P.L.O. by Austria. Israel's protest was delivered by Special Ambassador Sassoon as explained in the following statement:
At the instruction of the foreign minister, Special Ambassador Moshe Sassoon this morning called in the Austrian Charge d'Affaires, Mr. Peter Wilfling, and expressed to him Israel's strong protest at Austria's decision to agree to the appointment of an official representative of the P.L.O. to the Government of Austria and to recognize his organization.
Ambassador Sassoon pointed out to the Charge d'Affaires that, by its latest move, Austria has again aligned itself with an organization whose hands are drenched in blood and which clearly declares its desire for the destruction of Israel. Unfortunately, Mr. Sassoon added, the Government of Austria continues to conduct a policy that has serious implications for Israel's security and existence, by taking a one-sided position.
At the conclusion of his remarks, Mr. Sassoon emphasized that the Government of Austria, by ignoring what has happened to the Jewish people in Europe during the second world war, and by aligning itself with an organization which desires the destruction of Israel, has taken upon itself a weighty moral and political responsibility.
The Austrian Charge d'Affaires said that he would transmit Israel's strong protest to his government.
The Israeli Ambassador to Vienna, Mr. Yissakhar Ben-Yaakov, will be received today at the foreign ministry in Vienna and will also submit Israel's protest, in accordance with instructions he received from Jerusalem.