YouSaid · the spoken record

Greenblatt

lines on the record

30

first

2019-05-22

most recent

2019-07-23

sittings or episodes

2

sources

un-security-council

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

1. “And let us also not lose sight of the deep division that exists among Palestinians themselves - between Fatah and Hamas - a serious issue that must be resolved to make progress. Let us start a new realistic discussion. We need to look to the future rather than dwell on the past. Let us build real foundations ofpeace and work to truly transform lives by speaking the truth directly to one another across the table.”

   2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

2. “We all want to help those who continue to bear the unendurable weight of this conflict, whether they are Palestinians, Israelis or their many friends and neighbours in the region. So let us start by acknowledging that there are no shortcuts and that fictions of international consensus, international legitimacy, arguments about who is right and who is wrong as a matter of international law, and aspirations expressed as rights will not achieve peace. A solution cannot be forced on the parties. Unilateral steps in international and multilateral forums will do nothing to solve this conflict. Let us be honest with ourselves and the parties and the region that the only way ahead is direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.”

   2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

3. “The vision for peace that we plan to present will not be ambiguous, unlike many resolutions that have passed in this Chamber. It will provide sufficient detail so that people can see what compromises will be necessary to achieve a realistic, lasting comprehensive solution to this conflict, the conflict that has robbed so much potential from Palestinians, Israelis and the region as a whole. I ask all members to reserve judgment until we publish, and Council members read, the 60 or so pages that detail what peace could look like. Achieving that vision will require difficult compromises by both parties if they are willing to make such compromises, but we believe both sides will gain far more than they give. We all want this conflict resolved.”

   2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

4. “This is an unresolved dispute, and it will only be through direct negotiations between the parties that we have a chance of resolving that dispute and achieving a comprehensive peace. Let us not lose sight of the fact that Israel has already conceded at least 88 per cent of the territory captured by it in the defensive war it had no choice but to fight in 1967. We call on the leadership of the PLO and the PA to put aside blanket rejections of a plan they have not even seen and to show a willingness to engage in a good faith manner in a meaningful dialogue with Israel. And we call upon each of the Security Council members and each country that truly wishes to help the Israelis and the Palestinians achieve a comprehensive peace agreement to encourage them back to the table.”

   2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

5. “Many would rather rail against the supposed evils of what they routinely call an illegal occupation than engage constructively on the disputes that characterize the conflict today. That is not a productive dialogue. The dispute over the territory is a question that can only be resolved in the context of direct negotiations between the parties. And I am focused on how to get those parties back to the table. I hope I have the Council's support in that. Those who have weaponized the term "occupation" in order to criticize Israel are doing nothing to promote a resolution to this conflict. In fact, they are heavily undermining the chances for peace and the improvement of the lives of Palestinians and Israelis. Both Israel and the Palestinians have asserted a claim to certain land.”

   2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

6. “I am simply making a statement of fact. Aspirations belong at the negotiating table, and only direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians can resolve the issue of Jerusalem, if it can be resolved. It will not be resolved in this Chamber, in this institution or in any other capital around the world. That does not mean that the Palestinians cannot aspire to have a capital in East Jerusalem, with creative solutions that attempt to respect all three religions that cherish this incredible city. But if there is to be such a solution, only the parties themselves through direct negotiations can work this issue out. Many participants in this conversation continue to relitigate the events of 1967, when Israel heroically acted to defend itself against the threat to its very existence.”

   2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

7. “There is no international consensus about Jerusalem, and no international consensus or interpretation of international law will persuade the United States or Israel that a city in which Jews have lived and worshipped for nearly 3,000 years and has been the capital of the Jewish State for 70 years is not today and forever the capital ofIsrael. Jerusalem is a city ofthree world faiths. The rights of all who wish to worship at the holy sites in the city of Jerusalem must be protected. It is true that the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Palestinian Authority (PA) continue to assert that East Jerusalem must be a capital for the Palestinians. But let us remember: an aspiration is not a right. Please do not read into that statement anything about the content of the political portion of the plan.”

   2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

8. “That debate has not even bridged the gap between those who construe resolution 242 (1967) to call for the so-called right of return and compensation for displaced Palestinians and the fact that the world covers its eyes to the fate of the roughly equal number of Jews who were expelled or forced to flee their homes in Arab countries in connection with Israel's war of independence. Resolution 242 (1967) and others may have been drafted and voted upon in a genuine attempt to bring an end to the suffering that all involved in this conflict had endured, but we must acknowledge they have not succeeded. A comprehensive and lasting peace will not be created by fiat of international law or by these heavily wordsmithed unclear resolutions. The same holds true for the status of Jerusalem.”

   2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

9. “The conflict will also not be resolved by constantly referencing the hundreds of United Nations resolutions on the issue. The constant reference to these heavily negotiated, purposely ambiguously worded resolutions is nothing more than a cloak to avoid substantive debate about the realities on the ground and the complexity of the conflict. The interpretation of one of the most often-cited resolutions, resolution 242 (1967), has been hotly debated over the past half-century. That debate has not brought us closer to a lasting and comprehensive peace.”

   2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

10. “We have all heard cogent arguments claiming international law says one thing or another aboutthisorthataspectoftheIsraeli-Palestinianconflict. Some of those arguments are persuasive - at least to certain audiences, but none of them are conclusive. We will not get to the bottom of whose interpretation of international law is correct on this conflict. There is no judge, jury or court in the world that the parties involved have agreed to give jurisdiction to in order to decide whose interpretations are correct. International law with respect to this conflict is a tricky subject that could be discussed and argued for years without ever reaching a conclusion. We can therefore spend years and years arguing what the law is and whether it is enforceable and prolong the ongoing suffering or we could acknowledge the futility of that approach.”

    2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

11. “It is an organization that continues to vow to destroy Israel. That failure is profoundly shameful. If we cannot even reach an international consensus regarding Hamas, is an international consensus really going to end the conflict? And how is it that we cannot find an international consensus that the Palestinian Authority's rewarding of terrorism and the murder of Israelis using public funds, some donated by countries represented in this very Chamber, is abhorrent and must be stopped? International consensus is not international law. So let us stop kidding ourselves: if a so-called international consensus had been able to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, it would have done so decades ago. It did not. This conflict is also not going to be resolved by reference to international law when such law is inconclusive.”

    2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

12. “In fact, they are doing the opposite by allowing people to hide behind words that mean nothing. International consensus is too often nothing more than a mask for inaction. Let us not forget the day when the United Nations could not even find a way to build an international consensus behind the fact that Hamas is a terrorist organization that relentlessly attacks Israelis by incendiary balloons, missiles, attack tunnels and other means, sometimes while hiding in residential neighbourhoods filled with Palestinian families. Hamas ghoulishly holds Israeli soldiers Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul as bargaining chips. Hamas has imprisoned Israeli civilians Avraham Mengistu and Hisham Al-Sayed. Hamas is a brutal terrorist organization that causes nothing but misery and suffering for Palestinians and Israelis.”

    2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

13. “Peace will require honesty and a willingness to consider new ideas, as well as courage and hard compromises. This is a time for us to speak to each other candidly, not in stale slogans and talking points. Let me get a little specific here. The conflict will not end on the basis of an international consensus about who was right and who was wrong and about who should give up X and who should give up Y. International consensus might work from time to time, when such a consensus can actually be achieved. In the case of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, international consensus has not been achieved. Those who continue to call for international consensus on the conflict are doing nothing to encourage the parties to sit down at the negotiating table and make the hard compromises necessary for peace.”

    2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

14. “We have been clear and honest about the fact that this economic vision can be achieved only if there is a resolution to the political conflict between the parties. This is not an economic peace. There will be no economic prosperity without a political solution, but no political solution will succeed without a well- developed economic plan. President Trump has not yet decided when we will release the political portion of the plan, and we hope to make that decision soon. In the meantime, I want to ask for the help of those present to create the conditions by which we could all have a serious conversation. Among the many obstacles that we face is the constant drumbeat of tired rhetoric that is designed to prevent progress and bypass direct negotiations. It is time to retire that rhetoric.”

    2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

15. “In Manama, more than 300 Government, private sector and civil society leaders came together to demonstrate an international commitment to improving the lives of the Palestinians. Government leaders, chief executive officers and economists at the workshop agreed that the economic vision is detailed and ambitious, but achievable and potentially transformative with the right environment created by an agreed-upon peace agreement and proper governance structures. Our economic vision, which has now been downloaded from the Internet over 1 million times, contains a detailed portfolio of projects and capacity- building programmes that have the potential to unleash exciting, sustainable private-sector growth for Palestinians, Jordanians, Egyptians and Lebanese.”

    2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

16. “We hope that such frustration will be replaced by a mutual understanding that our vision provides a unique opportunity to help the two parties and their neighbours achieve what has been elusive for too long - a comprehensive peace agreement. We know that the Palestinians have seen promises made by some and not kept, but President Trump and his Administration desire to make the lives of everyone involved better. That means Palestinians in Gaza, Jerusalem and what many call the West Bank; and that means Israelis in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and what many call Judea and Samaria. I want to express my gratitude to the Kingdom of Bahrain for graciously co-hosting the very successful Peace to Prosperity workshop with us last month.”

    2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

17. “I am pleased to be back in the Security Council today. I would like to update members of the Council on the Trump Administration's peace efforts. I know that this institution has shown a deep interest in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I also know that many of those present are frustrated by the fact that we have not yet shared the details of the vision that we have crafted. We understand that. We hope that when the right time does come, that frustration will dissipate, as will the frustration that we all have about the lack of any progress towards the resolution of the conflict, as well as the lack of progress to improve lives and the security challenges that plague Israel and much of the region.”

    2019-07-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8583 (2019) · source

18. “And so too have the hopes of Israelis, who have lived under constant threats for decades and who yearn for peace. This conflict is sad and tragic and complex, on so many levels. But we must stop pretending that UNRWA and United Nations resolutions will somehow solve the conflict. They simply will not. Let us work together to find a real cure.”

    2019-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8532 (2019) · source

19. “I acknowledge that I have not brought with me today a solution - either to the acute crisis of the violent and illegitimate rule of Hamas over Gaza, or to the prolonged crisis caused by UNRWA's inability to fulfil its original mandate, or to any of the other challenges posed by this extraordinary conflict. What we do know is that what we have today is not the answer. We do know that Palestinians and Israelis both deserve better. We do know that it is time to move past band-aid solutions and political assertions into the adult world of hard choices. The hopes and dreams of Palestinians living in refugee camps have been suspended for too long. So have the hopes and dreams of Palestinians living under the punishing rule of Hamas in Gaza.”

    2019-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8532 (2019) · source

20. “They have nothing to lose and much to gain if they join us, but it is, of course, their choice. I cannot help but point out the irony that at the time of our conference in Bahrain, which can pave the way to prosperity for Palestinians, UNRWA is hosting a pledging conference for a broken system. The United States is committed to talking with others about how best to address the fearful uncertainty of UNRWA's service recipients, who are not sure whether schools or clinics will be open, and how we might help them actually build new lives - with or without a peace agreement. But we are also committed to resolutely standing by Israel as it address the urgent challenges presented by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad - attacks from Gaza or elsewhere. I approach this issue with humility.”

    2019-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8532 (2019) · source

21. “Those Jewish refugees' needs for basic services and their desire to build a brighter future for their children were not held hostage to politics. It is time for the needs of Palestinians for basic services and their desire to build a brighter future for their children to stop being held hostage to politics. Do we not have an obligation to the Palestinians to make that transition? Next month, in Bahrain, we and many others will participate in an economic workshop on an alternative path, with the potential to unlock a prosperous future for Palestinians. That is the first stage ofa process that we want to begin to showcase what could be - how, if we can achieve a political solution to the conflict, we can also transform the lives of the Palestinians. It would be a mistake for the Palestinians not to join us.”

    2019-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8532 (2019) · source

22. “We remain ready to begin that conversation now. It is time to start. We do not advance a comprehensive and enduring peace by ignoring the reality that UNRWA is unable to fulfil the mandate given to it by the General Assembly. We advance a comprehensive and enduring peace by making it clear that the international community is fully committed to providing a brighter future for today's Palestinians and their children. Palestinians have been held hostage for too long to United Nations resolutions, regional politics, donor fatigue and weak leadership. It has been 70 years - three generations of Palestinians who have suffered tremendously. A similar number of Jewish refugees expelled from Arab lands shortly after the creation of the State of Israel also suffered tremendously. But there is a difference.”

    2019-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8532 (2019) · source

23. “For too long, we have dismissed the dismal situation of Palestinians in refugee camps as an unavoidable by-product of the lack of a negotiated peace between Israel and the Palestinians. But nothing stops the international community from choosing to reach out its hand to Palestinians living in refugee camps today to address their very real, everyday needs in a sustainable way While we all continue to work towards a lasting comprehensive peace. We need to engage with host Governments to start a conversation about planning the transition of UNRWA services to host Governments or to other international or local non-governmental organizations, as appropriate. The United States is ready to participate in that conversation. We tried to begin that conversation before we cut our aid to UNRWA. No one wanted to engage in that conversation back then.”

    2019-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8532 (2019) · source

24. “Year after year, UNRWA and other donors turned to the United States to make up the shortfall. And year after year, Palestinian in refugee camps were not given the opportunity to build any future. They were misled and used as political pawns and commodities, instead of treated as human beings. UNRWA is currently running on fumes, surviving on a surge in foreign donations in 2018 that is unlikely to be sustained this year, or in future. What happens when the Agency's bank account is empty again? We need to be honest about the situation. UNRWA is a band-aid, and the Palestinians who use its services deserve better, much better. We do not have to a wait until a comprehensive solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is in place to address that fact.”

    2019-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8532 (2019) · source

25. “UNRWA's business model, which is inherently tied to an endlessly and exponentially community of beneficiaries, is in permanent crisis mode. That is why the United States decided that it will no longer commit to funding this irredeemably flawed operation. The UNRWA model cannot provide to Palestinians what they deserve - a life where they can plan for their future and the future of their children, and one where they know whether schools and health clinics will remain open. We did not come to that conclusion lightly. Since UNRWA's founding, the United States has donated $6 billion to it, vastly more than any other country. And yet, year after year, UNRWA funding fell short. Year after year, budget shortfalls threatened essential services to Palestinian mothers and children.”

    2019-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8532 (2019) · source

26. “Mladenov and others to determine how we can best help the people of Gaza move past 12 years of suffering and deprivation into a world in which they can imagine a real future. On a separate but closely related topic, nothing stops us now from undertaking the hard work of ensuring that the Palestinians who receive services from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) have access to more reliable and sustainable health and education services. I thank UNRWA Commissioner- General Krahenbiihl for his briefing today and for his work over the years. But I am afraid that it is time for him and everyone here today to face the reality that the UNRWA model has failed the Palestinian people.”

    2019-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8532 (2019) · source

27. “The State of Israel has no margin for error. The Palestinians are also entitled to safety and security. A first step towards that goal is for us sitting here today to admit that Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad are the primary barrier to the dreams of the residents of Gaza who want to live in peace, raise their families and find meaningful work. Mr. Mladenov's efforts on behalf of the United Nations, together with Egypt, have created a fragile peace in recent days. Qatar has sent funds, which has eased some suffering. Keeping that fragile peace intact will require intense international pressure on Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. If that calm holds, I look forward to working closely with all gathered here, Mr.”

    2019-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8532 (2019) · source

28. “As President Trump has said, the United States will always stand with Israel and we will always support its right to self-defence. But we should not stand alone. We must all speak loudly and clearly and say that these attacks upon Israel, which are perpetrated by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad - whether by rockets, incendiary balloons or otherwise - must end. I was just informed moments ago that Israeli firefighters are working to extinguish six blazes caused by incendiary balloons. Also, the terrible suffering that those attacks cause Israelis and Palestinians must end. Every Government has a responsibility to ensure the safety and security of its citizens. Since its birth, the State of Israel has faced threats from enemies that call for its destruction and the death of the Israeli people.”

    2019-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8532 (2019) · source

29. “It is simply unacceptable that Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad continue to use civilians in Gaza, including children, as human shields. It is simply unacceptable that Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad continue to siphon the scarce resources of the people of Gaza to build their terror arsenal while preventing donor aid from reaching the people. There will be no end to the suffering until all of us together say in public what I believe many here are thinking - Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad are to blame for the suffering of the people of Gaza. Nothing can be meaningfully fixed until they renounce terror and cease their acts of violence and their vow to destroy Israel. When will the Security Council say this out loud? When Will we clearly reject this terrorism?”

    2019-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8532 (2019) · source

30. “I thank Mr. Mladenov for his briefing and for his redoubled efforts to restore safety and security both to the people of Israel, who came under sustained attack from Gaza, and to the Palestinian civilians, among whom Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad members hid as they launched wave after wave of rockets. All of those innocent victims deserve better. The families of the four Israelis who died and the 200 Israelis injured, and the Palestinian civilians killed and injured by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad attacks all deserve better. It is simply unacceptable that Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad continue to target Israeli communities, including hospitals and schools, in a cynical attempt to extract concessions from Israel.”

    2019-05-22 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.8532 (2019) · source