No consensus for Palestinian statehood at UNSC

News Desk - The Cradle 

The Palestinian Authority resubmitted its application for membership last week, with Algeria potentially being at the helm of an upcoming vote

The UN Security Council failed on 11 April to reach a consensus on full UN membership for Palestine, which has held observer status since 2012. 

Just a week earlier, the Palestinian government in Ramallah reapplied for full UN membership, resulting in a formal review process at the Security Council. 

Malta’s ambassador to the UN, Vanessa Frazier – the temporary president of the council for the current month – said “there was no consensus” at the meeting, which took place behind closed doors. She added, however, that two-thirds of the members supported full Palestinian membership, without specifying which countries. 

Diplomatic sources told AFP that a vote on the matter may be held on 18 April, and led by Algeria, the representative of Arab states on the council. 

The Palestinian ambassador to the UN told reporters earlier in the week: “All we ask for is to take our rightful place among the community of nations.” Mansour sent a letter last week to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to resubmit the application.

The Palestinian Authority (PA) has been requesting statehood and full recognition at the UN for years. It had first applied for full membership in 2011 before the bid stalled.

Permanent Security Council members Russia and China have long backed the initiative of a two-state solution between the Palestinians and Israel. Despite the 2020 Abraham Accords and the US-sponsored push for Saudi–Israeli normalization, Riyadh recently has been the leading voice of a number of Arab states who reject normalizing ties until Palestinian statehood is achieved. 

In line with the Arab Peace Initiative launched in Beirut in 2002, the kingdom has called for an independent Palestinian state on pre-1967 borders, with east Jerusalem as its capital. 

Yet Israel has for years rejected such an agreement. Washington maintains that Palestinian statehood can only be achieved through direct agreement with Israel, rather than an official process for membership at the UN. 

Recent plans for an end to the war in Gaza and a US-backed initiative for post-war administration of the strip include guidelines for a demilitarized Palestinian state. 

Despite this, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continues to publicly reject all ideas of Palestinian statehood.