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U.S. Does Not Back UN Palestinian Statehood Resolution

(VOA News) Pamela Dockins - The U.S. has voiced opposition to the Palestinians' UN draft resolution. State Department spokesman Jeff Rathke said, "We don't think this resolution is constructive. We think it sets arbitrary deadlines for reaching a peace agreement and for Israel's withdrawal from the West Bank." Also, the U.S. says it does not back a draft UN resolution on Palestinian statehood, in part, because it would not guarantee Israel's security. Rathke said the resolution makes peace talks less likely to succeed and that the draft fails to take into account Israel's legitimate security needs, which he said are necessary for a sustainable settlement. Neri Zilber, a visiting scholar at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said even if Palestinians are successful at the Security Council, "They would still have to go back and meet with the Israelis face to face....My sense, from meetings with Palestinian officials, is that they view this more as a pressure tactic on Israel than as a real mechanism to bring about a Palestinian state in the foreseeable future."
2014-12-30 00:00:00
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