Jeffrey Sachs: The US will be diplomatically isolated for Palestine-Israel conflict but it deserves

Summary

The script discusses the two-state solution as the only path to peace in the Middle East, with a Palestinian state alongside Israel. It highlights the obstacles, primarily Israel's rejection and US veto, which have prevented its realization despite UN General Assembly support. The script calls for a global conference backed by the UN to overcome US veto and establish peace, urging China to support this effort, aligning with global consensus and the Arab League's Bahrain declaration.

Takeaways

• 🏛️ The two-state solution is presented as the only path to peace in the Middle East, involving a state of Palestine living alongside Israel with mutual security.
• 🚫 Israel's rejection of a Palestinian state and the United States' support for this stance are identified as the main obstacles to the establishment of a Palestinian state.
• 🌍 The international system's rules require a UN Security Council vote for the creation of a Palestinian state, which has been blocked by the US, despite Palestine meeting the criteria.
• 📜 The Palestine Authority's initial proposal for UN membership was made in 2011, and the US suggested accepting observer status as a temporary measure, which has not led to full membership.
• 🗳️ In April, the UN Security Council voted in favor of Palestine as a UN member state, but the US vetoed the decision, highlighting the power of a single country to block peace.
• 🏛️ The UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly in favor of Palestine's statehood, with 142 in favor and only 9 against, showing broad global support.
• 🔄 The Bahrain declaration by the Arab League expressed readiness for peace and normalization with Israel based on the two-state solution, indicating a peace offering from the Arab world.
• 🤝 The king of Bahrain's diplomatic efforts in Moscow and Beijing with the Bahrain declaration suggest a push for international support for the two-state solution.
• 🌐 A recommendation is made for China to support a UN General Assembly-backed global conference to overcome the US veto and demonstrate world consensus on the two-state solution.
• 🏳️‍🌈 The script emphasizes the need for peaceful, rational approaches to achieve the two-state solution, rejecting the use of wars and violence.
• 🛑 The final point stresses that continued Israeli rule over Palestinians is unacceptable and not conducive to peace, advocating for a just resolution that respects the rights of both peoples.

Q & A

What is the 'two-state solution' mentioned in the script?

The 'two-state solution' refers to the concept of establishing two separate sovereign states for the Israeli and Palestinian people, with Israel and Palestine coexisting peacefully as member states of the United Nations.

Why does the script suggest that the two-state solution is the only way to peace in the Middle East?

The script implies that the two-state solution is the only way to peace because it addresses the core issue of two peoples with competing claims to the same land, offering a potential resolution that recognizes the rights and security of both parties.

What is the role of the UN Security Council in the creation of a new UN member state?

The UN Security Council plays a crucial role in admitting new member states. A proposal for membership must be voted on by the Security Council, and a favorable vote is required for a state to be admitted as a UN member.

Why did the United States veto the UN Security Council's vote on Palestine's membership?

The script does not provide a specific reason for the U.S. veto, but it suggests that the U.S. has historically backed Israel's position, which opposes the creation of a Palestinian state.

What was the outcome of the vote in the UN General Assembly regarding Palestine's membership?

The UN General Assembly voted with 142 in favor and nine against, showing overwhelming support for Palestine's membership as a UN member state, despite the U.S. and Israel's opposition.

What is the significance of the Bahrain Declaration mentioned in the script?

The Bahrain Declaration is significant because it represents a peace offering from the Arab League countries, stating their readiness for peace and normalization with Israel based on the two-state solution.

Why did the King of Bahrain meet with President Putin and President Xi after the Arab League meeting?

The King of Bahrain met with world leaders to discuss the Bahrain Declaration and to seek international support for the two-state solution and the path to peace in the Middle East.

What is the script's recommendation for China's role in the peace process?

The script suggests that China should strongly support a UN General Assembly-backed global conference to make it clear that the world is united in favor of the two-state solution, thereby isolating the U.S. and Israel diplomatically.

What does the script imply about the U.S.'s diplomatic position if it continues to oppose the two-state solution?

The script implies that the U.S. will be diplomatically isolated if it continues to oppose the two-state solution, as the rest of the world is largely in favor of this solution for peace in the Middle East.

How does the script describe the current situation in Gaza?

The script describes the situation in Gaza as a 'massive cruel war crime-ridden destruction' caused by Israel's assault, highlighting the urgency and importance of finding a peaceful resolution.

What is the script's view on the necessity of a peaceful resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?

The script emphasizes the need for a peaceful resolution, stating that wars and violence are not the answers and that rational, decent thinking should lead to a solution that ensures peace and security for both Israelis and Palestinians.

Outlines

00:00

🕊️ Two-State Solution for Middle East Peace

The first paragraph discusses the two-state solution as the path to peace in the Middle East, which involves the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel, both with security guarantees. It highlights the challenges in achieving this solution due to Israel's opposition and the United States' support for Israel's stance. The paragraph outlines the process of Palestine's application for UN membership, which was initially proposed in 2011 and met with a favorable response from the UN Security Council, except for a US veto. It also touches on the UN General Assembly's support for Palestine's statehood and the need for a global conference to overcome the US veto and establish the two-state solution.

05:01

🌐 International Support for Palestine's Statehood

The second paragraph delves into the international community's support for the two-state solution and the Arab League's Bahrain declaration, which calls for normalization with Israel based on this solution. It describes the diplomatic efforts of the king of Bahrain to garner support from Russia and China for a UN General Assembly-backed global conference to solidify world opinion and counter the US veto. The paragraph emphasizes the importance of peaceful and rational approaches to achieve peace and the need for Israel to stop ruling over Palestinians, which is deemed unacceptable and not conducive to peace.

Keywords

💡Two-state solution

The 'two-state solution' refers to a proposed resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict where two sovereign states, Israel and Palestine, would coexist peacefully within mutually recognized borders. In the video's narrative, this concept is central to the discussion on achieving peace in the Middle East, with the speaker arguing that it is the only viable path forward due to the historical conflict over the same land between two peoples.

💡Palestine

Palestine is the term used to describe the territories of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, which are currently under varying degrees of Israeli control. The script discusses the aspiration for Palestine to become a member state of the United Nations, living alongside Israel, and the challenges it faces in achieving statehood due to opposition from Israel and the United States.

💡United Nations (UN)

The United Nations is an international organization tasked with promoting peace, security, and cooperation among member countries. In the context of the video, the UN plays a critical role in the process of recognizing new member states, with the script highlighting the UN Security Council's decision-making process regarding Palestine's application for statehood.

💡Security Council

The UN Security Council is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations, charged with ensuring international peace and security. The script mentions that the creation of a Palestinian state as a UN member state depends on a vote by the Security Council, which has significant implications for the two-state solution due to the power of veto held by its permanent members.

💡Veto

A 'veto' in the context of the UN Security Council refers to the power of a permanent member to block a decision, effectively requiring unanimous consent for certain important resolutions. The script illustrates the use of the veto by the United States to block the recognition of Palestine as a UN member state, which is a key point of contention in the narrative.

💡Observer status

Observer status within the UN is a designation given to entities that are not full members but can participate in certain UN activities. The script describes how the Palestinians were encouraged to accept observer status by the United States as a precursor to full membership, which has not yet materialized, leading to a sense of betrayal.

💡Diplomatic isolation

Diplomatic isolation refers to a situation where a country finds itself without allies or support in international diplomacy. The video script suggests that the United States has diplomatically isolated itself by consistently vetoing UN resolutions that would recognize Palestine as a state, going against the majority opinion of the international community.

💡General Assembly

The UN General Assembly is a main body of the United Nations in which all member states have equal representation. The script mentions a vote in the General Assembly where an overwhelming majority supported Palestine's statehood, indicating global support for the two-state solution despite the Security Council's stalemate.

💡Arab League

The Arab League is a regional organization of Arab countries in and around North Africa and the Middle East. The script refers to the Bahrain Declaration from a meeting of Arab League countries, which expressed readiness for peace and normalization with Israel based on the two-state solution, showing a collective regional stance on the issue.

💡Normalization

Normalization in the context of international relations refers to the establishment of diplomatic relations and peaceful interactions between previously hostile states. The video script discusses the Arab League's willingness for normalization with Israel, but only on the condition that it is based on the two-state solution, indicating a potential path towards peace.

💡Global conference

A global conference in this context would be an international meeting aimed at addressing and resolving a specific issue on a global scale. The script concludes with a recommendation for China to support a UN General Assembly-backed global conference to overcome the United States' veto and establish a clear world consensus in favor of the two-state solution.

Highlights

The two-state solution is presented as the only way to peace in the Middle East, with a state of Palestine living alongside Israel.

Israel's rejection of a Palestinian state and the United States' support for this stance are highlighted as the main obstacles to the two-state solution.

The international system's rules require a UN Security Council vote for the creation of a Palestinian state.

The Palestine Authority's initial proposal for UN membership was made in 2011, but was put on hold following US advice.

The US promised that observer status for Palestine would be followed by full membership, which has not occurred.

In 2023, the UN Security Council voted in favor of Palestine as a UN member state, but the US vetoed the decision.

The UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly in favor of Palestine's statehood, with only the US, Israel, and a few others voting against.

The UN General Assembly called for a conference to implement the recognition of Palestine as a UN member state.

The Arab League's Bahrain declaration expressed readiness for peace and normalization with Israel based on the two-state solution.

The King of Bahrain's diplomatic efforts to promote the Bahrain declaration in Moscow and Beijing are mentioned.

A recommendation for China to support a UN General Assembly-backed global conference to overcome the US veto is made.

The importance of world opinion and the diplomatic isolation of the US for opposing the two-state solution is emphasized.

The need for peaceful means to resolve the conflict and the rejection of further violence is stressed.

The transcript calls for a rational and decent approach to achieve peace, rather than war.

The transcript argues that Israel's continued rule over Palestinians is not acceptable and is not conducive to peace.

The vast majority of humanity, Arab countries, and international organizations are positioned in support of the two-state solution.

The US is portrayed as being on the wrong side of global opinion due to its stance on the Palestinian state issue.

Transcripts

[Music]

the path to peace in the Middle East is

the so-called two-state solution that

there should be a state of Palestine as

a member state of the United Nations

living alongside the state of Israel

with both States having their security

and this two-state solution is the only

way to peace because there are two

peoples that have been essentially

fighting over the same land for many

decades so why doesn't it happen it

doesn't happen mainly because Israel

rejects having a state of Palestine next

door and the United States has backed

Israel in its rejection of a state of

Palestine now this sounds strange how

could one country object this should not

be the decision of Israel uh this should

be the decision of the world Community

to end this hot War which is now uh also

killing tens of thousands of innocent

people in Israel's assault on Gaza but

under the rules of the International

System the creation of a state of

Palestine as a UN member State depends

on a vote of the UN Security Council

that vote was first proposed already 13

years ago when the Palestine Authority

proposed membership in the UN when an

entity proposes un membership it goes to

the Secretary General of the UN and then

the Secretary General clears it and

sends it to the admissions committee

which is essentially the UN Security

Council itself this happened back in

2011 and at the time admissions

committee said well Palestine meets all

all the criteria for becoming a UN

member state but Israel didn't want it

Israel wanted to rule over the entire

territory and the United States said to

the Palestinians well we understand yes

membership but why don't you just accept

Observer status right now and the

Palestinians who are vulnerable and weak

said okay if the US says so because the

US promised it will soon be followed by

membership that was yet another lie of

many many Lies Over many decades so 12

years later in the context now of a

massive cruel War Crim ridden

destruction of Gaza by Israel the

Palestine Authority said look we made

this application we renew the

application because it was accepted it

wasn't dismissed it wasn't rejected it

was put on hold because we listen to the

United United States unwisely I would

add so this was taken up again and the

UN Security Council voted in April

overwhelmingly in favor of Palestine as

a UN member State and then what did the

United States do it vetoed it so the

vote in the UN Security Council was 12

in favor one veto the US and two

exstension Switzerland and the UK now

this is again one country blocking peace

but the rest of the world is saying come

on of course we know the answer so this

went from the UN Security Council to the

UN General Assembly and there was a vote

in the UN General Assembly should

Palestine be a UN member State and the

vote was 142 in favor and nine against

who are the nine the US Israel of course

some very small islands and a couple of

few countries that for whatever reasons

fell into the US camp on this but

overwhelming World

support and the UN General Assembly said

well we need a conference to put this

into effect now the world is United the

UN is the right venue and the veto of

theit United States needs to be overcome

by making clear that the whole world is

on side except for Israel which opposes

absolutely unjustly and the United

States which has isolated Itself

diplomatically by this maneuver in May

the Arab League countries met in Bahrain

and had a very good declaration the

Bahrain declaration which said we're

ready for peace we're ready for

normalization with Israel but it must be

based on the two State

solution and this is a peace offering

this is the way to

peace and at the end of that meeting the

king of Bahrain went first to Moscow to

discuss this with President Putin and

then he came with the Arab delegation

that met with president shei in Beijing

and the king of Bahrain carrying the

Bahrain declaration said here is the

path so my recommendation is that China

strongly support a UN General Assembly

backed Global

conference so that the world opinion is

very clear so that no country has a veto

against World opinion so that it can

become clear to everybody that blocking

the two-state solution is actually

blocking peace it's not just blocking a

state of Palestine it's blocking the

real

solution and in this area China will of

course be on the side of the vast vast

proportion of Humanity on the side of

the Arab countries the side of the

organization of Islamic cooperation the

side of the uh the non-aligned movement

countries the side of the g77 countries

the US will be diplomatically isolated

but it deserves to be if it's on the

wrong side of global opinion and this is

what we need we need peaceful ways to

show that rational decent thinking leads

to a particular solution we don't need

Wars for this we don't need more

violence for this we need to show that

the world is United for peace and that

that's not even against Israel that's

for Israel's security but Israel cannot

continue to rule over millions of

Palestinian people that's not acceptable

that's not a way to peace