US President Barack Obama on Wednesday rejected Palestinian plans to seek UN blessing for statehood and urged a return to peace talks with Israel as he tried to head off a looming diplomatic disaster. Addressing the UN General Assembly, Obama – whose earlier peace efforts accomplished little – insisted Middle East peace “will not come through statements and resolutions” at the world body and put the onus on the two sides to break a yearlong impasse.
No short cut: “There is no short cut to the end of a conflict that has endured for decades. Peace is hard work,” Obama told an annual gathering of world leaders. Grappling with economic woes and low poll numbers at home and growing doubts about his leadership abroad, Obama is wading into Middle East diplomacy at a critical juncture for his presidency and America’s credibility around the globe.
Obama attempted to strike a delicate balance as he took the UN podium. He sought to reassure Palestinians he was not abandoning his pledge to help them achieve eventual statehood while also placating any Israeli concerns about Washington’s commitment to their security. Members of the General Assembly, where pro-Palestinian sentiment is high, listened politely but had only a muted response to Obama’s 36-minute speech. Obama followed his speech with a round of talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who echoed the president’s assertion that renewed negotiations were the only path to a peace deal but offered no new ideas how to get back to the table. He said, however, that the Palestinians’ UN statehood effort “will not succeed.” He was due to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas later on the UN sidelines.
Syria: Obama also used his wide-ranging speech to tout his support for democratic change sweeping the Arab world, urge further UN sanctions against Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad and call on Iran and North Korea to meet their nuclear obligations — twin standoffs that have eluded his efforts at resolution.
Obama rejects Palestinian UN statehood bid
