UN Votes On Palestinian Membership Bid—Opposed By US—Today. Here’s What Could Happen

Forbes Staff

Siladitya Ray is a New Delhi-based Forbes news team reporter.

May 10, 2024,09:29am EDT

Updated May 10, 2024, 12:43pm EDT

Topline

The United Nations General Assembly is expected to vote in favor of reviving the Palestinian bid to become a full U.N. member and granting it additional rights at the global body on Friday, weeks after the U.S. vetoed an earlier membership bid at the U.N. Security Council.

File Photo: The U.N. General Assembly is set to vote on reviving Palestine's full membership bid and ... [+] sending it back to the Security Council.

Anadolu via Getty Images

Key Facts

The General Assembly will vote on a draft resolution that would call on the Security Council to “reconsider the matter favorably,” as the Palestinian state would both need the council’s approval and a two-thirds majority in the General Assembly to become a full member.

The draft resolution recognizes the Palestinian state is qualified to become a full member and is expected to be approved by a large majority of the General Assembly’s 193 members, the Associated Press reported.

The resolution also seeks to grant the Palestinians “additional rights and privileges” at the U.N. including the right to be seated among other member nations in the General Assembly Hall.

The draft resolution also reportedly expresses “deep regret and concern” over the U.S. vetoing an earlier resolution seeking full membership for the Palestinians last month.

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What To Watch For

According to the AP, the final draft drops earlier language granting the Palestinians the ability to participate in the General Assembly and other U.N. bodies on “equal footing with member nations.” This was purportedly done to assuage China and Russia’s concerns about the resolution setting a precedent for the likes of Taiwan and Kosovo, respectively. The updated draft notes that the Palestinian representatives will not “have the right to vote in the General Assembly” or “put forward its candidature” to any of the key U.N. bodies.

Key Background

In 2012, an overwhelming majority of the General Assembly voted in favor of a resolution granting the Palestinian state non-member observer state status. Only nine members of the body voted against the measure, including the U.S. and Israel. Although the move was symbolic, it strengthened Palestinian officials’ ability to legally challenge Israel’s actions in international forums like the International Criminal Court.

Crucial Quote

In a statement on Thursday evening, the Palestinian Observer Mission at the U.N. urged other members to support the resolution, saying it would “constitute a clear reaffirmation of support at this very critical moment for the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, including the right to their independent State,” and represent “a tangible investment to preserving the two- State solution.”

Chief Critic

Gilad Erdan, Israel’s ambassador to the U.N., criticized the resolution in an X post earlier this week, saying: “The Palestinians are once again taking advantage of the automatic political majority and the moral decay of the UN…If the resolution passes, it will not change anything on the ground. It will only prove how disconnected the UN is from reality and how it rewards terrorism.”

Tangent

The U.S. has also expressed its opposition to the vote. Robert Wood, the deputy ambassador to the U.N., called it an “effort by some of the Arab countries and the Palestinians” to circumvent the established process of obtaining full U.N. membership. U.S. law prohibits the federal government from funding any U.N. agency that grants full membership to a Palestinian state. Under this law, Washington cut off funding to UNESCO in 2011 after the body granted membership to the Palestinians. In his X post, Erdan alluded to this, saying: “I expect the United States to completely stop funding the UN and its institutions in accordance with American law.” Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, said he has joined 24 other Republican senators to introduce legislation to “limit funds to the U.N. & other organizations that provide any status, rights, or privileges beyond observer status to the Palestine Liberation Organization.” Romney said: “The U.S. should not lend credibility to an organization that actively promotes and rewards terrorism.”