NEW YORK – World Jewish Congress President Ronald S. Lauder on Friday urged the United States to veto a Security Council resolution scheduled for the afternoon calling for an immediate end to Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
“A resolution of this kind is counterproductive, and does nothing to enhance the role of the United Nations in resolving the Middle East conflict. It is extremely disappointing that the Security Council would entertain yet another unbalanced and one-sided resolution against Israel.
“We urge the United States, Israel’s greatest ally, to veto this text. It has long been US policy that peace in the Middle East must be negotiated directly between the parties, not imposed by any outside international or other body. This is in keeping with UN resolutions that mandate direct negotiations. The Security Council cannot be used as a vehicle to upend these resolutions which would severely undermine the need for both parties to commit to negotiating in good faith.
“Israel has shown time and time again that it is willing to enter into talks with a view of ending this conflict, but the Palestinians, instead of coming to the negotiating table, have imposed numerous preconditions, including on the settlement question. It is lamentable that the United Nations, instead of playing the role of honest broker, is taking sides, thus making a peace deal more unlikely,” said Lauder.