It is the Israeli government’s “hope and belief” that if EU negotiations on establishing a common position break down, Malta will vote against Palestinian statehood at the UN.

Speaking to The Times, Israeli Ambassador Oren David described Maltese-Israeli relations as “won-derful” and brushed aside ques-tions about repercussions of a Maltese vote in Palestine’s favour: “Since it is our belief that Malta will not vote in favour of such a resolution, the question does not arise”.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas yesterday submitted an official bid for full membership to UN secretary general Ban Ki-Moon. As he spoke before a packed General Assembly hall, thousands filled the squares of Ramallah, waving Palestinian flags in support of their President’s bid.

The Palestinian President’s official request comes despite weeks of frantic negotiations from some member states aimed at convincing Palestinians to stop short of a full bid. Palestine currently has observer rights at the UN, giving it the right to speak at the General Assembly, but has no voting rights.

Palestine’s bid must be approved by the UN Security Council. That is unlikely to happen, given that the US has already said that it will veto any such bid, but permanent members like the US, France and Britain are anxious not to be cornered into a vote.

Mr David’s conviction concerning Malta’s voting in- tentions would appear to run counter to prevailing local political sentiment. Although Malta has so far kept mum on its voting intentions in the hope of a common EU position emerging, Foreign Minister Tonio Borg spoke of Malta’s historic support for Palestinian statehood last Thur-sday.

Opposition foreign affairs spokesman George Vella has said that he favours the bid, while Alternnativa Demokratika has also endorsed it. Mr David described Palestine’s proposed bid as “a counter-productive and unhelpful manouevre” in breach of all the international agreements between the two. Such a bid for UN membership, he said, would set a “dangerous precedent” for other “secessionist districts” around the world.

The ambassador declined to offer any examples of such “secessionist districts”, but suggested that Palestine should follow the model of South Sudan, which only sought UN membership once it had negotiated its independence from the North.

Last Wednesday, French President Nicolas Sarkozy put forward a compromise plan aimed at placating the Palestinians but avoiding a Security Council showdown.

The plan calls for Palestine to be made an observer state at the UN and for a one-year timeline to be established, during which a lasting solution on the establishment of a Palestinian state must be found. Malta has endorsed the French proposal, calling it a “step in the right direction”.

Becoming an observer state would require a simple voting majority within the UN General Assembly – something which is more or less a foregone conclusion. Such a status would place Palestine on a par with the Vatican, and allow it to become a full member of UN agencies such as the World Health Organisation and International Monetary Fund.

In last year’s address to the UN General Assembly, Foreign Minister Tonio Borg spoke of “new possibilities of the emer-gence of an independent, dem-ocratic and viable Palestinian state living side-by-side in peace with Israel”.

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