At
UN, Palestine
In Line to
Vice Chair
Upcoming Arms
Trade Treaty
Talks
By
Matthew
Russell Lee,
Exclusive
UNITED
NATIONS,
February 7, updated
– Palestine is
seeking to be
a vice chair
of
the upcoming
Arms Trade
Treaty talks
at the UN,
Inner City
Press has
learned, one
of three from
the Asia Group
along with
Japan and
South
Korea.
There
is not
surprisingly
some
opposition.
When US
Ambassador
Susan Rice
came out of
the Security
Council
Thursday
morning, Inner
City Press
asked her
about
"Palestine as
a vice chair
of the ATT?"
Ambassador
Rice told
Inner City
Press,
exclusively,
"I don't think
it's going to
happen.
They're not a
member state."
During the
Security
Council's
last Middle
East debate,
Ambassador
Rice opposed
even the
use of the
phrase “State
of Palestine”
on the placard
used in the
Council.
Back
in July 2012
Palestine had
to fight to
even be seated
in the Arms
Trade Treaty
talks in the
UN, finally
ending up not
between Palau
and
the
Philippines
but in the
front row in
the corner,
with the Holy
See.
That was
despite the
General
Assembly
resolutions
defining the
All States
format, from
1973:
specifically
November 16
and December
12 and 14. It
is related to
the so-called
Vienna format:
UN member
states and
members of the
specialized
agencies (like
UNESCO, which
Palestine
joined.)
Click here
for one of
Inner City
Press' six
stories on
that fight.
But
now, after the
General
Assembly's
November 29,
2012 vote
granting
Palestine
non-member
State status
at the UN,
Palestine is
currently
on a so-called
“clean slate”
to be come a
vice chair.
There will
be three from
the Asia
Group, for now
there are only
three
candidates.
Will
a legal
argument be
made against
Palestine's
participation
as vice chair,
or an
alternative
candidate be
drummed up?
With Japan and
South Korea
already on the
slate, who
else could be
found to play
that role?
Watch
this site.
, 
