twitter
youtube
instagram
facebook
telegram
apple store
play market
night_theme
ru
arm
search
WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR ?






Any use of materials is allowed only if there is a hyperlink to Caliber.az
Caliber.az © 2025. .
WORLD
A+
A-

US averts potential crisis with Israel over Palestine settlement expansion

20 February 2023 12:49

The Biden administration has averted a potential diplomatic crisis over Israeli settlements at the United Nations that had threatened to overshadow Western efforts for the world body to spotlight Russia’s war with Ukraine during the one-year anniversary of the Russian invasion this week.

Multiple diplomats familiar with the situation said on February 19 that the US had successfully managed to forestall a contentious UN Security Council resolution pushed by the Palestinians and their supporters that would have condemned Israel for settlement expansion and demanded a halt to future activity, Politico writes.

To avoid a vote and a likely US veto of the draft resolution, which would be legally binding, the diplomats said the administration managed to convince both Israel and the Palestinians to agree in principle to a six-month freeze in any unilateral action they might take.

On the Israeli side, that would mean a commitment to not expanding settlements until at least August, according to the diplomats.

On the Palestinian side, the diplomats said it would mean a commitment until August not to pursue action against Israel at the UN and other international bodies such as the World Court, the International Criminal Court and the UN Human Rights Council.

Instead of a resolution, the diplomats said the Security Council will adopt a weaker presidential statement along the lines of the resolution, probably on Monday. Presidential statements, which require support from all 15 council nations, become part of the council’s record but are not legally binding.

The diplomats spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the highly sensitive negotiations.

A veto of the settlements resolution would have been a political headache for President Joe Biden as he approaches the 2024 presidential election.

Biden is struggling to balance his opposition to Israeli settlements and his support for a two-state resolution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict with moves to improve ties with the Palestinians that have wide backing among his progressive supporters.

A veto would alienate UN member countries supportive of the Palestinians, like the United Arab Emirates, which was sponsoring the resolution in the Security Council, as the West seeks support for Ukraine in the war with Russia.

The US will be looking to the United Arab Emirates and other countries sympathetic to the Palestinians to vote in favour of a resolution in the 193-member General Assembly on February 16 condemning Russia for invading Ukraine and calling for a cessation of hostilities and the immediate withdrawal of all Russian forces.

The deal was arrived at on February 19 after days of frantic talks by senior Biden administration officials with Palestinian, Israeli and UAE leaders. Diplomats said the intensive effort includes Secretary of State Antony Blinken, US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, national security adviser Jake Sullivan, Sullivan’s deputy Brett McGurk, the top diplomat for the Middle East, Barbara Leaf, and special envoy for Palestinian affairs Hady Amr.

The Palestinian push for a resolution came as Israel’s new right-wing government has reaffirmed its commitment to construct new settlements in the West Bank and expand its authority on land the Palestinians seek for a future state.

Israel captured the West Bank, along with east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, in the 1967 Mideast war. The United Nations and most of the international community consider Israeli settlements illegal and an obstacle to ending the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Some 700,000 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank and Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem.

Caliber.Az
Views: 54

share-lineLiked the story? Share it on social media!
print
copy link
Ссылка скопирована
telegram
Follow us on Telegram
Follow us on Telegram
WORLD
The most important world news