Back to the UN

With the peace process now indefinitely stalled, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is set to return to the UN General Assembly in order to seek unilateral approval of a Palestinian state.

Abbas is apparently planning to make his move in September, when he will address the General Assembly. The question of when to request a vote on the matter, however, is an issue of contention within the Palestinian leadership.

According to the Associated Press,

Some Abbas aides are pushing for quick action, while Abbas is said to be leaning toward waiting until after the US presidential election in November. An earlier Palestinian UN bid could add unwelcome complications to UN President Barack Obama’s re-election efforts.

Palestinian officials have not taken sides publicly in the US presidential race. Although they have expressed disappointment over what they perceive as Obama’s failure to pressure Israel, they hope that — if re-elected — he will be more decisive in seeking a Mideast deal and freed from some of the domestic political shackles that hinder first-term presidents.

The General Assembly, it should be noted, cannot confer statehood status. This can only be accomplished through the Security Council.

A single member nation can veto a Security Council resolution, and thus far the U.S. has headed off all unilateral Palestinian moves. Whether it will do so again is an open question.

Nonetheless, a General Assembly victory would carry a considerable amount of weight internationally, and would represent a major defeat for the Netanyahu government.

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