A strongly-supported motion that would have suggested Palestine be granted full membership in the UN was vetoed by the US. As a result, the Security Council today halted Palestine’s application. Twelve of the fifteen members of the Council voted in favor of Algeria’s proposal, while the United States abstained and Switzerland and the United Kingdom cast negative votes.
Before the vote, diplomats said that the US mission was attempting to persuade one or two other council members to abstain to lessen Washington’s isolation on the matter. However, US officials said they were prepared to use the US veto in favor of Israel once more.
Palestinian envoy Riyad Mansour addressed the council, saying, “We want to enter your club as equals; we don’t want to replace anyone.” Despite the veto of the resolution, he declared that they would not give up. He declared, “The State of Palestine is inevitable.” “That’s true.” For a resolution to be passed by the Council, it must have at least nine votes in favor and not face a veto from any of the five permanent members: China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. A permanent member’s negative vote caused the Algerian draft to fail. The Security Council would have recommended that “the State of Palestine be admitted to membership in the United Nations” to the 193-member General Assembly if the draft had been approved.
Palestine applied to join the UN as a full member state in 2011. Its aspiration never came to pass, but in November 2012, the Assembly voted 138 times in favor, nine times against (Canada, Czech Republic, Federated States of Micronesia, Israel, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Panama, Palau, United States), with 41 abstentions. This gave it the status of a non-member observer State. Before being sent to the Assembly, where passage of the proposal needs the backing of at least two thirds of members, a proposal for admission to the UN must be authorized by the Council.
The Algerian delegate introduced the draft resolution and urged the Council to vote in favor of it and the Palestinians on behalf of his government, the Arab Group, the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation, the Non-Aligned Movement, and numerous other nations that uphold peace. “We owe its people a debt, and this is the least we could do to honor that debt,” he stated. Palestine satisfies the requirements outlined in the UN Charter for membership. He said, “Peace will come from Palestine’s inclusion, not from its exclusion. It is time for Palestine to take its rightful place among the community of nations.”
Failing to do so is a permission to maintain injustice and impunity, a denial of the Council’s responsibilities, and an irreparable error. Palestine has requested on April 2nd, in the midst of the ongoing conflict in Gaza, that a 2011 application to join the UN be given a second look. The request was discussed by the Security Council in 2011, but they were unable to come to a consensus to propose it to the General Assembly, which is required by the UN Charter to hold a vote involving all 193 Member States.
The Security Council’s Committee on the Admission of Member States, which convened on April 8 and 11, to deliberate on the issue, received the most recent request earlier this month.
Palestine was an observer at the UN General Assembly prior to becoming a Permanent Observer at the UN in 2012. Since the beginning of the ongoing hostilities in Gaza, the United States has vetoed a Council resolution five times, according to Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia. He claimed that the US has “once again demonstrated what they really think of the Palestinians.” “In Washington’s opinion, they are undeserving of their own state. They merely stand in the way of Israel’s objectives being realized. According to him, the vast majority of people on the planet currently back Palestine’s bid to join the UN as a full member.
“The US delegation’s use of the veto today is a futile attempt to halt history’s inexorable direction. He stated, “The vote results, in which Washington was essentially left in isolation, speak for themselves. According to US Deputy Permanent Representative Robert Wood, Council members have an extra duty to make sure that their activities support global peace and security and adhere to UN Charter provisions.
According to him, the Committee on the Admission of New Members’ report revealed that members could not agree on whether the applicant satiated the requirements for membership under Article IV of the UN Charter. According to Wood, the US is still very much in favor of a two-State solution.
“This vote is an acknowledgment that Palestinian statehood will only come from direct negotiations between the parties, not an indication that we are against it,” he said.e According to Chinese Ambassador Fu Cong, the Palestinian people’s long-standing goal has been dashed at a time when it is more important than ever for Palestine to be admitted as a full member of the UN. Questioning Palestine’s capacity to govern is unacceptable in light of the changes that have occurred in the last 13 years, including the growth of settlements, he said. He went on, “The right to the establishment of an independent State is unalienable and cannot be questioned.” There is little doubt that negotiations for a two-State solution with Israel would benefit from Palestine’s full membership in the UN.
Fu declared that China would assist Palestine and Israel in their efforts to bring about the day when they live side by side in peace, adding that history is moving forward in that direction. “Recent escalations make it even more important to support good-faith efforts to find lasting peace between Israel and a fully independent, viable, and sovereign Palestinian state,” stated UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. “Hundreds of millions of people throughout the region will continue to live under the constant threat of violence if we fail to make progress towards a two-state solution,” he warned the Council. Additionally, Guterres stated that there has been little to no effect from Israel’s pledge to increase assistance access to the Gaza Strip.
Additionally, Guterres stated that there has been little to no effect from Israel’s pledge to increase assistance access to the Gaza Strip. According to the secretary general, “apparent progress in one area is often cancelled out by delays and restrictions elsewhere.” He clarified, “For instance, even though the Israeli government has authorized more relief convoys, those authorizations are frequently given when it is too late in the day to complete distributions and return safely. Hence, the effect is minimal, occasionally nonexistent.
