The Washington Post said that the Palestinian Authority is working for global recognition of the State of Palestine by asking the Security Council to reconsider its application for full membership in the United Nations, which the Council agreed to do this month.

The Palestinian delegate to the United Nations, Riyad Mansour, expressed his hope that the Security Council would implement what the global consensus on the two-state solution requires, by accepting the State of Palestine as a full member of the United Nations, 12 years after changing its status to an observer state.

The Palestinian Authority applied for full membership in the United Nations in September 2011, but the Security Council never voted on it, because the United States stated that it would veto any resolution recognizing a Palestinian state.

Current situation

However, in November 2012, the United Nations General Assembly voted in favor of recognizing Palestine as a non-member observer state like the Vatican, which allows the Palestinians to participate in UN sessions without voting on resolutions, and also gives them the right to join other international organizations.

The Palestinian Authority officially submitted a request to the Security Council on April 2 to reopen its request submitted in 2011. The Council agreed to reconsider the offer without any of its members objecting, and the matter was referred to the committee charged with determining whether the State of Palestine qualifies for full membership.

Passing the request, if approved by the Committee, requires the approval of 9 members of the Security Council, with no veto power. If it receives approval, it moves to the General Assembly, which includes 193 members, and there its passage requires a two-thirds majority.

The odds

The newspaper said that the Palestinian state is not recognized by the “Group of 7” countries, but Professor of Development Studies and International Relations Gilbert Al-Ashqar believes that its recognition “is more likely to succeed now than ever before,” at a time when Western governments “are seeking to distance themselves.” About the Israeli war in Gaza.

Al-Ashqar warned that Russia and China recognize the Palestinian state, and that France and the United Kingdom are changing their positions over time, and both hint at possible support for the Palestinian Authority’s request, but the United States’ use of its veto power remains “the only real remaining obstacle,” especially since Washington’s position has been consistent since It has long maintained that membership should come only after a negotiated peace agreement is reached between Israel and the Palestinians.

The American position

The United States calls for a two-state solution - according to the newspaper - and believes that the issue of the Palestinian state must be settled through direct negotiations. It is now working with the Arab countries to develop a post-war plan in Gaza that includes a timetable for establishing a Palestinian state, but major obstacles stand. In the face of this plan, the most important thing is Israel’s strong opposition to it.

Independent Palestine

The newspaper pointed out that 140 countries out of 193 member states of the United Nations have recognized the Palestinian state since 1988, and the leaders of Spain, Ireland, Malta and Slovenia said in a joint statement that they will work to recognize the Palestinian state when “conditions become appropriate.”

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said, "The international community is now examining the issue of a Palestinian state as a way to build momentum toward a two-state solution."

Al-Ashqar said that switching from an observer member to a full member of the United Nations would only be a “symbolic victory” for the Palestinian Authority, at a time when Israel maintains control over the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, which it annexed.

Source: Washington Post