Visit of UN Delegation on Palestine to India

• 05 Mar 2020

Why in News

Recently, a UN delegation on Palestine visited New Delhi to seek India’s political and diplomatic support for a peaceful resolution to the long-standing conflict between Israel and Palestine.

• The delegation of the United Nations Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP) intends to engage India in the settling of the question of Palestine.

Key Points

• During the visit of the UN delegation on Palestine, India has reiterated its stand and supported the Two-State solution for the Israel-Palestine issue.
• The visit aimed to enhance the political and diplomatic support of India for a peaceful solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict and engaging Indian counterparts on synergies in capacity building for staff and institutions of Palestine.
• The delegation intends to involve countries like India as it shares good relations with both Israel and Palestine, and are also attached to multilateral principles, to play a bigger role in the resolution of the issue.

Two-State Solution

• The “two-state solution” is based on a UN resolution of 1947 which proposed two states - one would be a state where Zionist Jews constituted a majority, the other where the Palestinian Arabs would be a majority of the population. The idea was however rejected by the Arabs.
• For decades, it has been held by the international community as the only realistic deal to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
• India has consistently voted in favour of those resolutions that promote the two-state solution with a Palestinian claim to East Jerusalem.

India’s Stand on Israel-Palestine Issue

• In June 2019, India voted in favour of a decision introduced by Israel in the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) that objected to granting consultative status to a Palestinian non-governmental organization.
• In June 2018, India had voted in favour of Palestine on the UN General Assembly (UNGA) resolution to investigate an indiscriminate force usage by Israeli forces against Palestinian civilians.
• As a part of Link West Policy, India has de-hyphenated its relationship with Israel and Palestine in 2018 to treat both the countries mutually independent and exclusive.
• In December 2017, India had criticised the United States vote for recognising Jerusalem as the Israeli capital at the UNGA vote.
• In 2014, India favoured UNHRC’s resolution to probe Israel’s human rights violations in Gaza. Despite supporting the probe, India abstained from voting against Israel in UNHRC in 2015.

CEIRPP

• United Nations Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP) was founded in 1975 by the United Nations General Assembly.
• It aims to formulate a programme to enable the Palestinian people to exercise their right to self-determination, to national independence and sovereignty, and the right of Palestine refugees to return.

Source: TH