Politics

A European “Maybe” for Palestine

Nov 29, 2012 Ana Palacio

Tonight, the UN General Assembly will vote on the Palestinian Authority's bid to upgrade Palestine’s status to non-member observer state. Palestine will win, but the European Union, as divided as always on the Israel-Palestine conflict, will lose.

MADRID – On Monday night, the Palestinian Authority submitted a draft resolution to the United Nations General Assembly that, if approved, will upgrade Palestine’s status from “observer entity” to “non-member observer state.” A positive vote could change the outlook for bilateral talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

The vote comes after recent violence in Gaza has ostensibly delivered the coup de grâce to any realistic chance for meaningful negotiations to resolve a conflict that remains key to the wider region’s future. In this context, many factors will influence the General Assembly’s decision, one of the most significant of which will be the European Union’s position.

While EU countries have failed to reach a consensus, the European vote most likely will not hinder the resolution’s adoption, which would make Palestine the second state to gain non-member observer-state status, after the Holy See.

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0 Comments on this paragraph, 2 Comments on this article

Carol Maczinsky Nov 30, 2012

Cui bono when Europeans speak with one voice.
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Zsolt Hermann Nov 29, 2012

There is no question about the need to settle the present situation with a proper, satisfactory arrangement for the Palestinians, and a secure, sustainable state for Jews in Israel.
But the major problem with the present bid and a "two-state" solution discussed out of context is that it completely ignores the actual reality.
Any solution, agreement that leaves the other Arabic and Muslim countries and their stance, relationship with Israel out of the equation is totally futile.
Iran, Syria, Hezbollah from Lebanon just to mention a few do not threaten, sometimes fight Israel because they are championing the Palestinian cause, they by default do not accept the existence of a Jewish state, openly preparing for the annihilation of the Jewish state.
The seemingly unsolvable situation around Israel, or the situation at other seemingly unsolvable but less publicized flash-points in the world can only be settled in the context of a mutually responsible, mutually cooperating global human network.
In such a proper network the UN would also transform from a simple bantering market, and a place where certain countries can lobby and bully others to exert their self calculating influence on others, to a true place of assembly, where equal members discuss and solve global problems around a round table in a mutually responsible manner, always taking the benefit, the well-being of the whole as priority above individual and national benefits.
Until this is achieved humanity will continue to stumble and sink into ever deeper crisis and military conflicts, until all resources and hope is lost.
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