UN General Assembly votes to support a two-state-solution despite US and Israel opposition – JURIST
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) voted on Friday to endorse a declaration establishing a roadmap towards a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine. The “New York Declaration” as first proposed in July 2025 would include an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all hostages, and the establishment of a fully sovereign Palestinian state.
10 countries, including Israel and the United States, voted against the resolution, whereas 12 nations abstained. Sponsored by France and Saudi Arabia, the declaration precedes what is set to be on the agenda for the 2025 UNGA General Debate.
The declaration comes at a time when several UN members have expressed their intention to formally recognize the Palestinian state, including France and several other EU Member States, which has been met with backlash from the US and Israeli diplomats.
The US Mission to the UN opposed the declaration, calling the General Assembly “misguided and ill-timed,” asserting that the resolution is “more of a gift to Hamas rather than an effort to end the conflict.” According to the statement, notions such as “the right to return”, referring to the potential return of Palestinian refugees displaced after the 1948 Arab-Israeli war and their descendants, are detrimental to Israel as a Jewish state.
The Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) consist of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip, captured and de facto controlled by Israel since the 1967 Six-Day War. Large areas within the Palestinian territory, including the Israeli-controlled East Jerusalem, are under full Israeli military and administrative control but are not recognized by the UN.
Under international law, the right to self-determination is a foundational principle that supports the case for Palestinian statehood. Article 1(2) of the UN Charter, for example, calls for good relations with other nations under the principle of “equal rights and self-determination of peoples.” UNGA Resolution 3236 (1974), on the other hand, emphasizes the inalienable rights of the Palestinians to self-determination without any external interference and the right to national independence and sovereignty.
