Egypt says it will back Palestinian bid to upgrade status at UN

Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohammad Kamel Amr said on Thursday that his country would support the Palestinian bid to become a nonmember state at the United Nations.

According to a report on Israel Radio, citing the Arabic daily Al-Arabiya, Amr said he has been in contact with several European foreign ministers by telephone and encouraged them to back the Palestinian cause.

The Palestinian Authority intends to ask the General Assembly to vote on upgrading its status from observer to nonmember state. The PA failed to achieve a binding unilateral declaration of independence for Palestine at the UN last year at the Security Council. Now it plans to appeal to the General Assembly, which decides nonmember state status.

The Palestinian Authority’s diplomatic push to upgrade its status has been stalled for months. Its decision to move forward with the bid for recognition at the international body comes despite warnings by the United States, the European Union, and Israel, which have argued that such a unilateral maneuver takes the place of peace talks and hinders the advance of peace. The US and Israel threatened that they will place economic sanctions on the PA if it goes ahead with the move.