Calls on the UN Security Council to once again consider the issue of Palestine's admission to the UN
New York (UN). May 10th. INTERFAX - The UN General Assembly (GA) on Friday voted in favor of a resolution recognizing the right of Palestinians to full membership in the Organization and called on the Security Council to once again consider this issue.
The document was supported by 143 States, nine countries opposed it, and 25 abstained. Two thirds of the votes of the Member States were required for the adoption of the resolution.
The resolution published on the UN website, in particular, states that the General Assembly "decided that the State of Palestine has the right to membership in the UN in accordance with Article 4 of the UN Charter and should be accepted as a member of the UN."
"The General Assembly accordingly recommends that the Security Council positively review this issue in the light of this decision," the text of the draft resolution emphasizes.
In addition, the UN General Assembly calls on the international community to resume and coordinate efforts aimed "at an immediate end to the Israeli occupation that began in 1967 and a just, lasting and peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in accordance with international law."
Before the vote, Russia's permanent representative to the UN, Vasily Nebenzia, said that Palestinian membership in the UN would be the first step in resolving the Palestinian issue.
"It is the adoption of the state of Palestine that would be the first practical step towards a just solution to the Palestinian question on a platform approved by the United Nations and based on a generally recognized legal framework," Nebenzia said.
He added that the adoption of this draft resolution, although it will not change the status of the Palestinians in the UN, but will provide them with more opportunities.
"Because of the US position, Palestine is still forced to be content with only the status of a permanent observer at the UN. It will remain so even after the adoption of this draft, but it will receive a number of additional opportunities for more effective work in the UN General Assembly and in the framework of meetings held under its auspices," the Russian Permanent Representative stressed.
In addition, Nebenzia expressed hope that the United States would no longer block a resolution on Palestinian membership in the UN Security Council.
Earlier, Western media wrote that it was unlikely that the vote would change the status of the Palestinians in the world organization. In fact, it will serve to further consider Palestine's application to join the UN, despite the fact that in April the United States blocked a UN Security Council resolution recognizing the Palestinians as full members of the organization. According to the rules, the application for membership must first be approved by the UN Security Council, and after that by the General Assembly.
The Times of Israel, in turn, reported that Israel's permanent representative to the UN, Gilad Erdan, condemned the draft resolution of the General Assembly before the UN General Assembly vote, saying that it would grant the Palestinians de facto status and rights of the state and contradicts the fundamental UN Charter.
"If it is approved, I expect that the United States will completely stop funding the UN and its institutions in accordance with American law," Erdan said.
According to US law, Washington cannot finance any UN organization that grants full membership to any group that does not possess the "internationally recognized attributes" of statehood. For example, the United States stopped funding the United Nations Cultural Agency (UNESCO) in 2011 after the Palestinians became its full member.
In mid-April, the UN Security Council did not adopt a draft resolution that recommended that the General Assembly grant the Palestinians full membership in the international organization.
12 members of the Security Council voted in favor, including Russia. Two more abstained. The USA is the only country that voted "against".
At least nine votes in support and no veto from the permanent members of the Security Council were required to approve the resolution. According to the procedure, if the document gets the required number of votes and no one blocks it, it goes to the UN General Assembly for consideration. To approve full membership, Palestine needs two thirds of the votes of the members of the General Assembly.
The Chairman of the Palestinian National Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, applied for full membership of the Palestinian state in September 2011, but then failed to secure the necessary support of nine of the 15 members of the UN Security Council. Since November 2012, the Palestinians have been granted observer status at the United Nations. The relevant decision was supported by the UN General Assembly by two thirds of the votes.