On
Palestine
at UNSC "No
Nine Votes" So
Delay
Predicted,
Quartet As
Pretext
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
September 26
-- In the run
up to the UN
Security
Council's
Monday
afternoon
meeting on Palestine's
application
for UN
membership,
Inner City
Press asked
Council
diplomats what
they
expected to
happen.
"I
don't
think they
have nine
votes," one
well placed
Council source
said. "So the
Arabs may want
to delay it."
This source
said that the
Quartet
statement of
Friday
afternoon made
it easier
for those not
wanting to
vote "yes" --
he listed
Nigeria,
Gabon and
Bosnia -- to
explain their
changed
position.
Another
source said
given a lack
of nine votes,
ironically the
US might want
to call for
a vote now,
and not have
to use a veto.
But that would
be difficult.
While
it was
argued last
week that
since nine
Council
members have
in the past
recognized
Palestine
there should
be nine votes
now for
membership,
Bosnia for
example can be
hamstrung by
the position
of the
Republica
Srbska third
of its
triumvirate
government.
Abbas gets
ready to rock
the House,
Sept 23, 9
votes not
shown
Bosnia's
Permanent
Representative
Ivan Barbalic
told Inner
City Press
"the
Presidency" is
considering
how to vote,
and that it
was
difficult to
say anything
on Monday
morning.
Nigeria, too,
is not
considered a
sure yes vote.
Germany's
Deputy
Permanent
Representative
Miguel Berger
told Inner
City Press the
obvious, that
things will
not move as
fast as they
did for South
Sudan: a three
day rocket
docket. It
will be
procedure, to
decide how
to proceed, he
said. Watch
this site.
* * *
Hurry
Up
and Wait at UN
on Palestine
Application,
Ashton Wants
Talks
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
September 23
-- Palestinian
Friday at the
UN turned out
to be as
dramatic, or
more, than Mahmoud Abbas
had predicted.
Abbas
turned in
Palestine's
application
for statement
to Ban
Ki-moon, who
passed it on
to the
Lebanese
President of
the Security
Council.
(Inner City
Press is putting
it online,
here.)
Then the
Middle East
Quartet
convened a
2:30 meeting
at the UN,
with convoys
of black
vehicles
screeching up
to the UN as
the UN's top
security
official ran
outside,
following a
dust-up
between
Security and
Turkey inside
the UN.
Following
the Quartet's
meeting and
statement, the
EU's Catherine
Ashton came to
speak and to
take
questions.
Inner City
Press asked
her if the EU
members on the
Security
Council will
all vote the
same way on
Palestine's
application.
Ashton said
that is not
her focus, she
is
concentrated
on
negotiations
between the
parties that
could lead to
peace for the
two peoples.
Lady Ashton
Sept 23, won't
say how EU
members of
SC'll vote
Just
as Ashton was
finishing it
was announced
that Nawaf
Salam,
President of
the Security
Council for
September,
would speak at
the Council
stakeout at
3:30. He did
not take any
question, but
announced that
there will be
Council
consultations
on Palestine's
application
Monday at 3
pm.
Inner
City Press
asked a member
of the
Lebanese
delegation
about Benyamin
Netanyahu's
statement that
the Security
Council this
month is led
"by
Hezbollah."
After a pause,
the
representative
said, "He can
say what he
wants."
Back
in the North
Lawn building,
after Tony
Blair took to
the
microphone,
Hillary
Clinton
followed but
did not take
any questions.
Will the UN
"have" to
veto? That is
a question.
Watch this
site.
, 
in