PRESIDENT Recep Tayyip Erdoğan lamented the United States’ pro-Israeli stance in Palestine’s bid for United Nations membership.
Erdoğan said the U.S. veto on Palestine’s full UN membership in support of Israel was something they had already expected.
The resolution would have paved the way for the recognition of a Palestinian state of the 15 members of the UN Security Council, 12 had voted in favor of the resolution. Two countries – the United Kingdom and Switzerland – abstained, while the US vetoed it.
Palestinian Authority President, Mahmoud Abbas, also criticized the U.S. veto while Hamas, Iran, Egypt, and Qatar have also condemned the move.
The international organization accepted Palestine as an observer state of the U.N. General Assembly in 2012. The move allowed Palestine’s envoy to participate in debates and U.N. organizations. States are granted membership to the U.N. by the decision of the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council.
A council resolution needs at least nine votes in favor and no vetoes by the permanent members which include the U.S., Britain, France, Russia, or China for a state to be granted full membership.
