Are The Palestinian Arabs Losing The Backing Of The West?

Of course, it's no big deal to point out the Palestinian Arabs are losing some US support. After all, the US has already made clear that they will veto the idea of recognizing a Palestinian state at the UN come September.

But more than that, there are real tensions developing between the US and the Arabs:

“They informed us that they would use the veto if we go to the Security Council,” Erekat said. “They also told us that Congress would vote in favor of cutting off financial aid to the PA if it proceeds with its plan to go to the UN.”


Erekat and Abu Rudaineh held talks in Washington with David Hale, US special envoy for Middle East peace, and Dennis Ross, special adviser for the Persian Gulf and Southwest Asia to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Erekat blasted the House of Representatives and the Senate for threatening to cut off financial aid to the Palestinians as “unacceptable and unjustified.”

The Palestinian Arabs claim that they are not phased by this and plan to go ahead because they have the support of 115 countries and expect to get the support of 20 more by September.

That is an interesting claim, considering the fact that there are signs that the Palestinian Arabs are losing European support as well:

More than 100 European Union parliament members say they object to a unilateral declaration of Palestinian statehood in September.

In a letter addressed to EU Foreign Policy Chief Catherine Ashton, parliamentarians from several states and from across the political spectrum assert that one-sided Palestinian moves will push peace further away.

Taking into account the 150 countries backing the Arab claim to a state and the over 100 countries that are opposed, you get 250 countries--which is interesting, since there are only 191 member countries in the UN.

Come September, we will see who is telling the truth.

Technorati Tag: Israel and Palestinian State.