Before the UN, Abbas calls for international aid for peace in the Middle East
(B2 with AFP) Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called on Tuesday (February 20) at the UN Security Council for “ creation of a multilateral mechanism » to resolve the Palestinian question. “ It is essential to create a multilateral mechanism through an international conference” to have peace in the Middle East ", he said.
The leader thus rejected the principle of sole mediation by the United States in the peace process in the Middle East, which has in any case remained at an impasse for years. " Help us! “, implored the Palestinian president to the 15 members of the Security Council. Mahmoud Abbas then left the room to applause, attending neither the speech by American Ambassador Nikki Haley nor that of her Israeli counterpart, Danny Danon.
No plan B
« There is no plan B [...] to a two-state solution », indicated for his part the Secretary General of the UN, Antonio Gutteres. It goes through the elements already laid out in Oslo and taken up regularly by Europeans and the international community: “ a solution of two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side peacefully within secure and recognized borders. A solution that addresses all final status issues based on relevant United Nations resolutions, international law and mutual agreements.”
Palestine campaigns for its recognition
During his long speech, the Palestinian president asked countries that have not recognized the State of Palestine to do so. Of the 193 member nations of the United Nations, 138 States have done so, he recalled. “ We will come back to the Security Council and ask for this protection » of full and complete recognition of a State. “ Recognizing the State of Palestine does not go against negotiations » but favors them, he insisted.
NB: Palestine has been a “non-member observer state” of the UN since 2012, which allowed it to integrate UN agencies and join the International Criminal Court (ICC). But membership status requires a recommendation from the Security Council to the UN General Assembly, which must be acquired unanimously, at least without a veto. Which would be surprising from the United States, Israel's primary supporter.
The question of Jerusalem
The Palestinian president also denounced unilateral decisions such as the recognition at the end of 2017 of the United States of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, but in a much more moderate manner than he had done in the days following the announcement of the decision. “ We want Jerusalem to be open to the three monotheistic religions “, he underlined, demanding the “ suspension » of this decision and that Jerusalem also be the capital of the future Palestinian state. All this under the gaze of Nikki Haley, the American ambassador, who remained with her arms crossed.
Single American mediation rejected
Mahmoud Abbas, however, rejected the sole mediation of the American administration since this American decision on Jerusalem.
“This decision will not change,” replied the American ambassador dryly. She criticized the UN for spending "too much time" talking about the Middle East and for systematically blaming the responsibility of Israel, "the most democratic country in the Middle East", for the lack of progress. . In December, the Palestinians benefited from the unanimity of the Security Council minus one vote - a veto from Washington - to condemn the American decision to recognize Jerusalem. This conviction was then approved by a majority of the UN General Assembly. The Israeli ambassador rejected the Palestinian president's speech outright. “You are not part of the solution but part of the problem.” “When we extend our hand, Mahmoud Abbas extends his fist,” he summarized. - Mirage and desert - The Trump administration claims to be working on a peace plan for the Middle East but the latter still seems to be in limbo. “They are in the middle of internal discussions,” explains a diplomat, who doubts that Washington already knows where to go from there. Jared Kushner, son-in-law of President Donald Trump and the role of intermediary in the Middle East, traveled to New York to attend the Security Council meeting. The "compromise" envisaged by the American administration contains "a lot of potential" to improve the lives of the Palestinians, assured Nikki Haley, without elaborating.
“We have never refused dialogue,” said the Palestinian president, believing that “Israel has turned away from the two-state solution.” “The Donald Trump government has not clarified its position. Is it in favor of one state or two states?” he asked. “The Israeli occupation that was once temporary has become permanent,” he lamented. “Eighty-six UN resolutions have remained a dead letter,” he also asserted.
A mirage in the desert?
“If we are not careful, this solution (of two states) will disappear like a mirage in the desert,” added the French ambassador, François Delattre.
