Palestine says it will “reassess” relations with the US after UN veto

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas declared this Saturday (April 20, 2024) that the Palestinian Authority will reconsider its relations with the United States, in response to the North American veto of the Palestinian attempt to obtain full member status in the UN (Organization of the United Nations) on Thursday (April 18).

For accession to be effective and for the State to obtain full rights in the international community, approval was necessary both by the Security Council and by 2/3 of the UN General Assembly. The result of the vote on Thursday (April 18) was 12 votes in favor, 1 against and 2 abstentions.

In a statement to the Palestinian news agency WAFA this Saturday (April 20, 2024), Abbas stated that “hostile positions” adopted by President Joe Biden’s administration “have sparked unprecedented anger among the Palestinian people and the populations of the region, potentially pushing the region towards further instability, chaos and terrorism”.

He stated that the Palestinian leadership will reevaluate its bilateral relations with the US to protect Palestinian interests and rights, as opposed to following “a North American vision or regional agendas”.

“We are on the cusp of a new and challenging phase, with multiple options before us… we will formulate a new strategy to protect Palestinian national decisions independently”said the Abbot.

The practical consequences of Abbas’s statement are unclear. However, it is the strongest criticism of US policy he has expressed since the start of the Biden administration. The White House has not yet responded to the Palestinian president’s comments.

MEMBERSHIP PROCESS

On September 23, 2011, Palestine asked to join the UN. The request for Palestinian participation in the international entity was an attempt to end tensions between Israelis and Palestinians and enforce the 2-State solution. Here is the full request made in 2011 (PDF – 36 kB, in English).

In a document sent to the UN Secretary General in 2011, the president of the Palestinian Authority responsible for sending the request, Mahmoud Abbas, stated that he had the honor of, as the “sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people”say that the State of Palestine is “lover” of peace and that accepts to fulfill the obligations contained in the Charter of the United Nations.

Despite the petition, the Palestinian woman was never admitted as a full member of the UN. Instead, the following year, in 2012, the Palestinians obtained status of observers.