Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas will assume the chairmanship of the largest bloc of developing countries at the United Nations on Tuesday in New York City, Nabil Abu Rudeinah, Abbas’s spokesman, says in comments published on the official news site Wafa.
In July, the bloc, known as the Group of 77, chose the “State of Palestine” to serve as its next leader.
Abbas spokesman adds the PA president will deliver a speech upon receiving the chairmanship of the group, in which he will “express our people’s appreciation for the election of the State of Palestine to chair this important bloc.”
The Group of 77 is a consortium of 134 developing countries that often works together in the UN General Assembly. The body was originally founded in 1964 with 77 countries, including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Thailand and India. Over the years it has grown to include countries such as South Africa, Qatar, Cuba, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Singapore, and Angola, and currently represents some 80 percent of the world’s population.
Abu Rudeinah also says the Palestinians taking over the chairmanship of the Group of 77 constitutes “a historic and important event.”
In October 2018, the General Assembly voted by an overwhelming majority to temporarily grant Palestine additional rights and privileges, allowing it to head the Group of 77.
While it serves as the leader of the body, Palestine will be able to cosponsor proposals and amendments, make statements, and raise procedural motions.
In October, both Israel and the US expressed strong opposition to granting the Palestinians extra rights at the UN.
— Adam Rasgon