No Security Council 'consensus' on Palestinian UN membership

UNITED NATIONS

Members of the U.N. Security Council have failed to reach a consensus on a bid by Palestinians for full U.N. membership, meaning the longshot effort is now likely headed for a more formal council vote.

The Palestinians, who have had observer status at the world body since 2012, have lobbied for years to gain full membership, which would amount to recognition of Palestinian statehood.

Any request to become a U.N. member state must first pass through the Security Council - where Israel's ally the United States wields a veto - and then be endorsed by the General Assembly.

In light of Israel's offensive in Gaza, Palestinians revived a 2011 U.N. membership application last week, prompting the Security Council to launch a formal review process. This included the ad hoc committee that failed to reach consensus on April 11 and was composed of the council's member states.

During its closed-door meeting "there was no consensus," said Maltese Ambassador Vanessa Frazier, who holds the council's rotating presidency for April.

However, two-thirds of the members were in favor of full membership, she said, without specifying which countries.

While the ad hoc committee can only move forward by consensus - loosely speaking, when everyone is in agreement - any Security Council member may now put forth a resolution for vote on the matter.

According to diplomatic sources, a vote could be held April 18, brought forth by Algeria which represents Arab nations on the Council.

Even if the matter were to receive the necessary nine of 15 votes, observers predict a veto from the United States.

Meanwhile, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez embarked on a European tour to try to convince more nations to recognize the Palestinian state.

Madrid has vowed to recognize the Palestinian state before July, but it hopes more countries will follow its lead.

The recognition of Palestinian statehood was the key focus in the meeting between Sanchez and Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris on April 12 in Dublin.