US puts pressure on Palestinian leaders to withdraw bid for UN vice-presidency role

The US has ordered its Jerusalem embassy to pressure the Palestinian leadership into dropping a bid for a UN general assembly vice-presidency, anxious that the role could allow Palestinians to chair high-profile debates on the Middle East.

A 19 May state department cable seen by the Guardian instructed the US embassy in Jerusalem to issue a démarche (a formal protest) to the leaders of the Palestinian Authority (PA) pressuring them to withdraw the bid by 22 May, warning that “consequences will follow” if they failed to comply.

The Trump administration, which has resisted all moves towards Palestinian statehood, is seeking to pressure the Palestinian observer mission at the UN to withdraw its bid for one of 16 vice-presidential positions on the general assembly, which are due to be elected on 2 June alongside the president of the assembly’s next year-long session. The US mission has “repeatedly appealed” to the Palestinians to stand down, according to the cable.

“In a worst case scenario, the next PGA [president of the general assembly] might assist the Palestinians in presiding over high-profile sessions related to the Middle East or during UNGA81 high-level week,” the cable read, referring to a week of summits and leaders’ speeches planned for September in New York.

The Palestinians are currently running as one of four delegations on a Asia-Pacific group slate. Although the vice-presidential role is less prominent than the presidency, the cable noted that vice-presidents could be deputised to oversee general assembly sessions.

The communication said Palestinian diplomat, Riyad Mansour, the long-serving representative of the Palestinian mission, withdrew his candidacy for general assembly president in February after American lobbying, a move Washington said showed he “understood the gravity of the issue and intended to be constructive.”

It warned that the vice-presidency bid “calls that into question” and accuses the PA of prioritising “symbolic appointments” over substantive engagement. The candidacy, the cable reads, “undermines President Trump’s Comprehensive Plan” which is the administration’s 20-point proposal for a US-led reconstruction of Gaza that involved the creation of the US-chaired Board of Peace.

“A bully pulpit for Mansour would not improve the lives of Palestinians and would significantly damage US relations with the PA. Congress will take it extremely seriously,” the state department cable said, adding: “To be clear. We will hold the PA responsible if the Palestinian delegation does not withdraw its VPGA candidacy, and consequences will follow.”

The cable suggested using two specific threats. It recalled that in August, before the previous UN summit week, the Trump administration denied and revoked all visas for Palestinian officials, but a few days later waived the restrictions on officials already assigned to the mission.

“It would be unfortunate to have to revisit any available options,” the cable said, in an apparent threat to revoke the visas of the Palestinian UN mission.