Ioannis Kasoulides (PPE). - Mr President, the EU is called upon to play an important role at the vote on the resolution of the General Assembly on Palestinian statehood. After the success of EU countries within NATO in Libya, the relevance of the EU as an international actor will be tested if it succeeds on this occasion in having a common position, and is pivotal in arriving at a UN resolution that is acceptable to all which can get the peace process going.

The wording of the resolution matters: a single ‘yes’ and the ensuing reactions of Israel and the American Congress risk causing irremediable damage to the peace process; a single ‘no’ will jeopardise the credibility of the Palestinian Authority in the eyes of its own people, will encourage extremists and will further alienate the Arab world. Perhaps it should be: ‘upgrade Palestine to a status similar to that of the Vatican or Kosovo; acknowledge the entitlement of the Palestinians to an independent state on the basis of the 1967 borders, as described by President Obama in his recent statement, as soon as all the appropriate conditions have been met; acknowledge the entitlement of Israel to exist demographically as Jewish in character within internationally recognised borders and with all its security concerns guaranteed; oppose all unilateral actions, including new facts on the ground and settlement expansions; call for the resumption of direct negotiations guided by the above principles; and review the resolution in 12 months.’