Posted By richards on November 14, 2012
PALESTINIANS will not succumb to United States President Barak Obamas request to postpone their United Nations bid and will ask members the UNs General Assembly to vote on a resolution to upgrade the Palestinians status to a non-member state no later than the 29th of this month.
Obama called Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas asking him to postpone the Palestinian bid at the General Assembly, according to Mohammed Shtayyeh, a Fatah Central Committee member and negotiator, (The) United States never wanted us to go to the Security Council, or the General Assembly, Shtayyeh told journalists in Ramallah. We were officially requested to postpone since February 2012, and we have been postponing since that date until after the American elections, he added.
Shtayyeh said that when Palestinians asked the Americans until when they should postpone the bid they did not answer. They also did not offer what Palestinians will get in return, adding that Palestinians had not wanted to be a topic in the American election campaign where a candidate may use an attack on Palestinians to garner votes.
We understood that they dont want us to be part of the elections game, but this is behind us now and we should think beyond the UN resolution, Shtayyeh said, explaining that Palestinians dont see any reason for postponing. The General Assembly considers the 29th as the day of Solidarity with Palestine, Shtayyeh said.
Describing the tone of the phone call as positive, Shatyyeh expressed hopes that Obama will be more engaged in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in his second term. Was there any pressure on Israel to stop settlement building? Or stop its occupation? he asked, referring to Israels control of the West Bank. The final application date will be discussed by Arab foreign ministers in Cairo.
Shtayyeh added that the resolution means recognizing the Palestinian territories as a state and not as a member, because membership has to go through the UN Security Council. Palestinians atbodyted to get full membership in 2011 but the application didnt go through because they lacked the nine necessary votes to pass the resolution, which the Americans also threatened to veto.
Palestinians hope UN recognition will help regenerate hope as they think this measure will have the political significance of preserving the two-state solution and give it international legitimacy, after a year of political standstill. For example, the Palestinian territories, currently deemed as disputed territories by Israel, will be recognized by the UN as Palestinian occupied territories.
Palestinians believe that statehood recognition will pressure Israel to come seriously to the negotiations table and provide new terms of reference for future negotiations with Israel. The Palestinians refuse to negotiate without a construction freeze on Jewish communities in the West Bank.
The UN, as the source of international legitimacy, will be the source of legitimacy for any future negotiations, Shtayyeh said.
Shtayyeh told journalists that terms of reference have been scattered between the Road Map, (UN resolution) 242, the Arab peace initiative and the speech by President Bush in the Rose Garden.
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Despite Obama plea, Palestinians forge ahead with UN upgrade bid
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