The Palestinians not only want more rights from the UN General Assembly, but also overwhelming support for full membership – this puts the USA in particular under pressure.
The United Nations General Assembly is due to vote today on strengthening the rights of Palestinians within the UN’s largest body. The current draft resolution grants the former observer state of Palestine active participation in the sessions of the General Assembly, but does not give it regular voting rights. With the draft resolution, the Palestinians want to secure global support for full UN membership.
The text states that the General Assembly determines that “the State of Palestine (…) should be admitted to membership in the United Nations” – the UN Security Council, which is responsible for this, should “reconsider the matter favorably”. However, because of the USA’s veto right in the most powerful UN body, a positive decision is considered impossible. The draft resolution is available to the dpa – it can still change due to ongoing negotiations. A vote around 5 p.m. German time appears likely.
International mood on the Middle East conflict
Against the backdrop of the Gaza war, the initiative in the UN General Assembly with its 193 member states in New York is also a reflection of the international mood on the Middle East conflict. Diplomats assume that the resolution will easily achieve the necessary majority of two-thirds of all votes cast – and that the result will also reflect international support for the Palestinians in view of the recent escalation in the Middle East conflict.
While some of Israel’s allies, such as the US, are expected to vote no, a number of abstentions from Western states and a large majority of yes votes from the rest of the world are expected. At the United Nations, there is usually a clear majority for resolutions critical of Israel or pro-Palestinian. A veto right like in the Security Council does not exist in the General Assembly.
Draft resolution has been causing unrest for weeks
The text called “Draft Resolution on the Admission of New Members to the United Nations,” introduced by the United Arab Emirates but drawn up by the Palestinians, has been causing unrest at the UN headquarters in New York for weeks. The influential countries USA, China and Russia fear a loss of control in the upgrading of regions whose statehood is controversial. Names such as Kosovo, Taiwan and Nagorno-Karabakh come to mind in this context. The text therefore emphasizes that the case of Palestine is an exception “without creating a precedent.”
The UN Charter stipulates that the admission of a new member state takes place on the “recommendation of the Security Council by resolution of the General Assembly”. A corresponding resolution failed in the UN Security Council in mid-April due to the veto of the United States. The US government takes the position that an agreement with Israel on a two-state solution would be a prerequisite for recognizing full UN membership for Palestine. An application for full membership in the Security Council had already failed in 2011. According to diplomats, there is no change in the American attitude in view of the vote.
Germany does not recognize Palestine
Of the 193 UN member states, more than 130 have so far recognized Palestine as an independent country. Like the USA, Germany is not one of them. In 2012, Palestine – similar to the Vatican – was upgraded to a non-member observer state at the United Nations, with 138 votes in favor. Within the UN system, Palestine is considered a “state”, but from Germany’s point of view, the country of Palestine does not exist as such – the Foreign Office speaks of the “Palestinian territories” in relation to the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem.
Because of limited international recognition, at least some countries doubt that Palestinians can participate in international organizations in the same way as members whose statehood is not in question.
The United States has another concern if the resolution is adopted, as UN expert Richard Gowan of the Crisis Group think tank explains: “It is likely that Israel and some of its strongest allies in Washington will respond by demanding that that the United States cut off funding for the United Nations as a whole.”
What could change with the decision
The background is US laws that prohibit the American government from funding UN organizations if they grant full membership to a group “that does not have the internationally recognized characteristics of statehood.” According to lawyers, this would not be the case with the resolution to be voted on, but resistance could still arise in Washington.
