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7863rd Security Council Meeting: Situation in Middle East, Palestinian Question - Part 1
Speaking via video link from Jerusalem, Nickolay Mladenov said that message had also been delivered at the conference on Middle East peace held on 15 January in Paris, where representatives of 70 countries and others reaffirmed their support for a two-State solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and their readiness to foster a return to the negotiation table.
Through those measures, he said, the international community had called on Israel to halt its settlement activities and shift policies to align with prior agreements. Similarly, the international community urged Palestinian leaders to condemn all acts of terrorism and to curb incitement. “Such steps by both sides would have a powerful and positive impact on the prospects for peace,” he said, pointing out that the July 2016 report by the Middle East Quartet (United Nations, United States, European Union, Russian Federation) had made the same call.
Amid calls for the partial or total annexation of Area C, he cautioned against unilateral actions that could prejudge a negotiated final-status solution. More generally, rare opportunities to advance peace must be seized, he said. “What is required is action, first and foremost by the parties themselves,” he added, pledging that the United Nations remained committed to supporting Israelis and Palestinians on the difficult road ahead.
In the ensuing open debate, the Permanent Observer for the State of Palestine described resolution 2334 (2016) as a chance to salvage the two-State solution. The text was not anti-Israel, but pro-two-States and pro-peace, he emphasized, adding that it represented a turning point. “The stakes are too high — the possibility of peace in the present, but also our collective future — and must be prioritized,” he stressed. The State of Palestine was ready to abide by the resolution, bearing in mind the serious obstacles arising from the occupation.
Israel’s representative, however, said resolution 2334 (2016) had “set us back in the pursuit of peace” by designating the country’s presence in parts of Jerusalem liberated in 1967 as a flagrant violation under international law. The message from the Council, from Washington, D.C., and now from Paris only encouraged Palestinians to continue down a dangerous path of spreading lies. “Their end game is not to create a State alongside Israel, but rather to replace it completely.” The conflict was not about settlements, but about refusal to accept a Jewish State, he said, adding that Israel had suspended $6 million from its 2017 United Nations contributions, which should be seen as an act of protest.
Nonetheless, many speakers voiced support for resolution 2334 (2016), with Jordan’s delegate emphasizing that it would, in fact, reduce tensions and bolster Israel’s security. Indonesia’s representative said the measure implied a change of heart that her country had urged for years. The Council must now come down on the side of justice over injustice, she emphasized. An inability to implement resolution 2234 (2016) would be evidence of its paralysis and proof that “even when its words are strong, its muscles and sinews are not”.
Other speakers agreed that unless reversed, the situation on the ground would lead to more hatred in the region. Italy’s representative, warning that the erosion of a two-State solution could lead to a “one-State illusion”, urged the two sides to commit to re-establishing a political horizon that would lead to direct negotiations. Similarly, Egypt’s representative highlighted his country’s connection with both sides, stressing that his delegation would spare no effort to seek a just peace based on the two-State solution and in cooperation with like-minded countries. The representative of the United States, meanwhile, stressed that no one except Israelis and Palestinians could make decisions on final-status issues, adding that her delegation’s position on settlements remained unchanged.
Several delegates urged Israel to abide by its international obligations and to resume negotiations towards a two-State solution. Venezuela’s representative pressed Israel to stop turning its back on international law. Bolivia’s representative cited his counterpart from Israel as having said that the dozens of resolutions adopted since 1947 in support of Palestinian rights could be left to “collect dust” since they remained unimplemented. It would be the United Nations Charter doing so unless something was done to stop Israeli violations, he emphasized.
More broadly, speakers welcomed the recently announced ceasefire in Syria as a much-needed sign of hope. The Russian Federation’s representative said that a meeting to be held in Astana, Kazakhstan, on 23 January would include representatives of the Government of Syria and opposition groups. The event should be seen as a bridge to the Geneva negotiations planned for February, he added.
Speakers also hailed progress made in Lebanon, where the newly formed Government had outlined a national vision. India’s representative said that Lebanon’s resolution of complex sectarian issues through institutional means and political processes carried valuable lessons for other situations in the region.
Also speaking today were representatives of France, Senegal, Uruguay, Ethiopia, Japan, China, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, United Kingdom, Sweden, Lebanon, Norway, Iran, Cuba, Turkey, Syria, South Africa, Malaysia, Costa Rica, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Iraq, Morocco, Brazil, Argentina, Uzbekistan (on behalf of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation), Maldives, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and Saudi Arabia (on behalf of the Arab Group).
A representative of Israel took the floor a second time in response to remarks by her colleagues from Iran and Bolivia.
The Council also heard from the Vice-Chair of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People.
The meeting began at 10:05 a.m. and ended at 3:12 p.m.
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