US May Not Even Need To Use Its Veto To Oppose Palestinian State

After all is said and done, the US may be off the hook and not need to use its veto, as the Security begins to privately consider Abbas's request for recognition of a Palestinian state:

The Palestinians' initiative to seek U.N. recognition as a state, which goes to the Security Council on Monday, faces an uphill struggle to secure the nine votes needed for approval.

Without those votes in the 15-member body, the United States will be spared the embarrassment of having to veto the application, which would be a further blow to its floundering efforts to secure Middle East peace.


As the formal discussions start, diplomats say the Palestinians have only six certain votes on the council -- China, Russia, Brazil, Lebanon, India and South Africa.

Those nations, except Lebanon, make up the BRICS bloc of emerging powers whose economic and diplomatic clout has grown as trade becomes more globalized and the United States and Europe fight prospects of another recession.

But diplomats say the BRICS countries seem to have made no attempt to use their considerable weight, often on show in financial and trade matters, to force the Palestinian issue. They have essentially taken the same approach as always.

"If a vote was held today, the Palestinians wouldn't have enough votes to carry the day and the Americans wouldn't even need to use their veto," a Western diplomat told Reuters.

I'd expect the Arabs to delay consideration, but I on Twitter I saw that according to the German Mission to the UN they have started deliberations--and according to Al Jazeera, the Palestinian Arabs are giving it 2 weeks, without saying exactly what they will do if they don't get what they want.

Not that anyone they would go back to the negotiating table.

While Abbas commented in his speech that he expected a decision within weeks instead of month, the actual limit is 35 days to review and assess membership. The case of South Sudan was an exception--it became the 193rd U.N. member within a matter of days.

By the same token, the 35-day limit can be waived, which I suppose would help if the West decides to try again to apply pressure on getting peace talks going.

Bottom line, the article indicates that the US will still not be off the hook in terms of being seen as overly pro-Israel. With the 2012 elections on the horizon, I don't think Obama minds being viewed that way for the time being.

Technorati Tag: Israel and Palestine and UN.