The_Guardian_-_2016-12-29

its closest ally – and other friendly countries that voted for the resolution – and accusations of
betrayal and underhand dealings.
However, describing the decision, Kerry said: “If we had vetoed this resolution … the United States
would have been giving license to further, unfettered settlement construction that we fundamentally
oppose.
“It is not this resolution that is isolating Israel. It is the permanent policy of [Israeli] settlement
construction that risks making peace impossible.”
The US secretary of state’s speech came as Donald Trump vowed once again to reverse US policy,
which he has described as hostile to Israel, as soon as he takes office on 20 January.
The US president-elect issued a pre-emptive rebuttal to Kerry’s speech earlier on Wednesday.
Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump)
We cannot continue to let Israel be treated with such total disdain and disrespect. They used to
have a great friend in the U.S., but…….
December 28, 2016
Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump)
not anymore. The beginning of the end was the horrible Iran deal, and now this (U.N.)! Stay
strong Israel, January 20th is fast approaching!
December 28, 2016
Despite being delivered in the last weeks of the Obama administration, Kerry’s speech – as well as
the UN resolution – have been widely seen as a part of an effort to future-proof the two-state solution
against the incoming Trump administration, giving the EU and other institutions the tools to continue
pressuring Israel on issues such as the settlements.
This resulted in one of the most passionate speeches delivered by Kerry during his time as America’s
leading diplomat.
Pushing back at Israel’s fury over the US abstention , Kerry pointedly questioned Netanyahu’s
commitment to Palestinian statehood , asking whether Israelis believed their interests were best
served by the recent attacks on the Obama administration by Israeli leaders.
Kerry also offered a bleak vision of the risk of the collapse of the Oslo peace process and the twostate
solution, describing the alternative one-state solution in the darkest terms.
“Today, there are a similar number of Jews and Palestinians living between the Jordan river and the
Mediterranean Sea,” Kerry told his audience of diplomats in Washington, out lining the demographic
reality on the ground that would colour the future of a unitary state.