NEW YORK, April 18. /TASS/. The United States is on a mission to persuade members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) not to support a resolution proposing making Palestine a permanent member of the organization, The Intercept reported, citing unclassified cables of the US Department of State.
Russia’s First Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Dmitry Polyansky announced the introduction of the draft resolution on Palestine’s membership on Wednesday. The diplomat said that a vote had been requested for 3:00 p.m. (8:00 p.m. GMT - TASS) on April 18.
"It remains the US view that the most expeditious path toward a political horizon for the Palestinian people is in the context of a normalization agreement between Israel and its neighbors," The Intercept quoted the cable as reading. "We therefore urge you not to support any potential Security Council resolution recommending the admission of 'Palestine' as a UN member state, should such a resolution be presented to the Security Council for a decision in the coming days and weeks," the State Department said.
UNSC approval would mean neither "statehood nor self-determination" for the Palestinian people, the State Department argued. Such an initiative would rather drive the parties further apart and "heighten the risk" of violence in the Middle East, it said. It is therefore important to let the UNSC know that a number of members "have questions that require further study about the Palestinian Authority’s formal request for UN membership through the Council," the cable said.
According to the news portal, the US has been putting pressure on Ecuador to lobby Malta, the rotating president of the council in April, as well as Japan and the Republic of Korea, to oppose UN recognition. In turn, Ecuadorian Foreign Minister Gabriela Sommerfeld agreed with Washington that "any proposed resolution fails to achieve the necessary votes without a US veto."
Palestine currently has permanent observer status in the UN. In 2011, the Palestinian leadership already applied for full membership in the organization, but later decided to remain an observer. In April 2024, it sent a letter to the UN Security Council asking that its application to join the UN as a full member be reconsidered.