On 23 September, Sir Jeremy Greenstock, UNA-UK's Chairman, spoke to Radio 4's Today Programme on Palestine's bid for UN membership, which was submitted today to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
According to the provisions of the UN Charter, the Secretary-General must verify an application before transmitting it to the Security Council. The Council then decides whether or not to recommend admission to the General Assembly. If the Council makes a positive recommendation, it is put to the 193-member Assembly as a resolution and must be secure a two-thirds majority to pass.
The past months have seen frantic diplomatic activity as Israel and the United States, which has indicated that it will veto the recommendation in the Security Council, sought to avoid the bid being made. It appears that a compromise has been reached by which the Council's vote will be put on hold to allow for fresh attempts at reviving the peace negotiations.
In his interview, Sir Jeremy Greenstock called the move a 'sign of desperation' and stated that although the membership bid is unlikely to be successful, by going to the UN, the Palestinians are moving the debate to 'a court that will listen to them, and not ignore them'.
