The United States has vetoed a United Nations resolution seeking to grant Palestine full membership, a move that has drawn sharp criticism from China. The resolution enjoyed support from 12 of the 15-member Security Council, with the UK and Switzerland choosing to abstain.
Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, expressed his disappointment, describing the veto as a \"sad day\" that ruthlessly dashed the decades-long aspirations of the Palestinian people for full UN recognition.
China challenged the notion that Palestine lacks the capacity to govern itself, pointing to significant changes over the past 13 years, including the expansion of settlements in the West Bank. Fu Cong condemned the US decision as \"gangster logic\" and emphasized the urgent need to revive the two-state solution as the fundamental pathway to resolving the Middle East conflict.
In his remarks during the Security Council's open debate, Fu stressed that implementing the two-state solution is essential for ensuring security and development for both Palestinians and Israelis, as well as fostering harmonious relations between Arab and Jewish communities.
This marks Palestine's second attempt to secure full UN membership. The first application, submitted by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in 2011, was unsuccessful due to insufficient support within the Security Council. Abbas criticized the US veto as \"unfair, immoral, and unjustified,\" asserting that it goes against the collective will of the international community, which largely supports Palestine's quest for full UN membership.
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China slams U.S. veto of Palestine's pursuit of full UN membership
cgtn.com