United Nations Security Council Disapprove of Proposed Israeli Construction

The U.N is under a great deal of pressure after Secretary of State John Kerry, representing the United States, delivered an opinion related to one of the United State’s most controversial relation conflicts: the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The Security Council of the U.N is an assembly of fifteen members that gather to discuss and vote on decisions that can potentially resolve issues by the most peaceful means. These fifteen members are the most influential members of the U.N since they are the only members that may vote on issues. All other members of the U.N can suggest solutions to members of the Security Council but do not hold the ability to vote on proposed solutions.

When the Security Council was established, five countries were declared permanent members: China, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the United States, the United Kingdom, and France. Although the USSR no longer exists, the other four members still do and hold a prestigious amount of power. These members have the right to veto propositions. If any permanent member casts a vote against a resolution, the resolution does not pass regardless of whether the rest of the Security Council voted in favor of it.

Permanent members also possess the right to abstain from a vote. If a member is not in favor of or against a resolution, they may abstain to show that they neither support or refute it. If a majority of the Security Council vote for a resolution, the abstinence does not affect the result of the vote and the resolution will be put into place.

As described on un.org, the Security Council’s meeting on December 23, 2016 was a meeting to settle “the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question.” This description alludes to the Israeli-Palestinian issues. Both Jews and Palestinians have had a continuous struggle over the land in the West Bank of Israel. After Israel was recognized as a state by the United Nations in 1949, the Palestinians remained in the area of the West Bank.

The United States has been one of the greatest allies of Israel in the past. They have supported their existence as a state and their political principles through foreign aid. Both Israel and the United States has provided billions of dollars in foreign aid to support one another. The vote that took place on December 23, 2016 is sure to be one of the most controversial U.N decisions of 2016.

Israel has proposed settlement construction in the West Bank. Once this proposal became deemed a controversial issue by the U.N, a meeting was scheduled. At the conclusion of the meeting, 14 members voted in favor of denying Israel the right to build in the West Bank. The U.S was the only member that did not vote with the rest of the council’s members. The United States abstained from the vote. Many Americans were satisfied with the decision while many began to heavily criticize the U.S. for not using their ability to vote against this resolution.

The next day, Secretary of State John Kerry delivered a speech that explained the reasoning behind the United States’ decision to abstain from the vote. Kerry explained, “This is an issue which, all of you know, I have worked on intensively during my time as Secretary of State for one simple reason: because the two-state solution is the only way to achieve a just and lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians”. Kerry’s speech acted as a confirmation for the Jewish community. Kerry wants to maintain and strengthen U.S-Israel relations while maintaining peace with Israel’s neighbors.

Although Kerry tried to convey a message of unity, peace, and strength, not all were satisfied with the decision. Two of the largest political figures in the international world were very critical of Kerry’s speech: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President-elect Trump.

Netanyahu began his speech by praising the United State for their support “over many, many decades.” He continued, “Our alliance is based on shared values, shared interests, a sense of shared destiny and a partnership that has endured differences of opinion s between our two governments over the best way to advance peace and stability in the Middle East.” However, towards the middle, a drastic change in his tone occurred. One of the highlights of this speech that demonstrate this critical tone are as followed; “Secretary Kerry paid lip service to the unremitting campaign of terrorism that has been waged by the Palestinians against the Jewish state for nearly a century.” Netanyahu was clearly discouraged by the decisions of President Obama’s administration.

President-elect Trump sided with Netanyahu on this issue. Donald Trump used his Twitter platform to show his disapproval of the United States’ decision in several tweets. “As to the U.N., things will be different after Jan. 20”. Donald Trump clearly supports Netanyahu on his stances. He has had several meeting with the President-elect and has congratulated him on his victory. If current indications hold true, they will most definitely be working together come January 20th.

Americans continues to be divided on the controversy of U.S relations with Israel. Many Americans praise Kerry’s work in the United Nations while many disapprove of his work. However, it is important to note that Kerry, Netanyahu, and Trump all want to maintain the strong relations between Israel and the United States. Their approaches towards maintaining peace are simply very different.