NEW YORK -- The Obama administration has not yet decided whether to endorse efforts at the United Nations Security Council addressing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by the end of the president's term, Washington's envoy to the UN, Samantha Power, told a group of Jewish leaders on Thursday.

The Manhattan meeting, which included Power and over 40 representatives from the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations, featured a lengthy conversation on the prospect of UN action– of great concern to the Jewish American establishment, to the Israeli government and apparently opposed by the president's choice for successor, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who has characterized such moves in the past as "counterproductive."

Be the first to know - Join our Facebook page.


Attendees of the meeting who spoke afterwards with The Jerusalem Post left with the impression that Power doubts action will be taken. But US officials say that no final decision has been made as to how the US will proceed.


"When asked about whether the Obama administration was planning an initiative related to Middle East peace, Ambassador Power stated that she could not foreclose any options, because ultimately, such a decision will be made by the president," a US official told The Post on Friday night, confirming the conversation. "When asked about a potential UN Security Council resolution, she answered that she would not speculate on a hypothetical resolution and clarified that no such resolution is on the table today."

France has led an effort in recent months to outline international parameters for a two-state solution, and to effectively set a refreshed standard for an end to the decades-old conflict. Israel opposes the initiative as an imposition of terms, but the US says it supports the effort in principle.

Paris would like such terms codified in a Security Council resolution. The US says that it does not oppose all resolutions on Israel in the council as a blanket rule.

Power said that the administration "will continue to assess how to most effectively support a negotiated two state solution, and reaffirmed that the administration would oppose one-sided resolutions at the UN Security Council that delegitimize Israel or undermine its security," the official added.






Think other should know about that? Please share