The US State Department spokeswoman intensified her rejection of the New York conference on the Palestinian state, using language that mirrors the rhetoric of Smotrich, Ben Gvir, and the US Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee.
For America to oppose a major conference led by two influential countries–Saudi Arabia and France–on the global stage is hardly surprising, given its consistent policy of blocking any initiative on the Palestinian question unless it passes through Israel and is sponsored by the United States alone.
What seems illogical in this context is the spokeswoman’s claim that the UN conference disrupts genuine efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East. The obvious question arises: where are these efforts, with whom are they being conducted, and how?
There is no clear answer. The United States has shown itself incapable of facilitating even the entry of a supply truck into Gaza, has failed miserably to broker a temporary ceasefire, and has been ineffective in arranging even a limited exchange of prisoners and hostages. At best, Washington has disagreed with Netanyahu only on whether a famine exists in Gaza, while aligning with him on the continuation of the war and providing all the necessary means to sustain it.
In doing so, America continues to stand alone against the will of the international community, including many of its own friends and allies. It persists in viewing the Middle East exclusively through Israel’s lens, as though Smotrich and Ben Gvir themselves are dictating its positions on every development.
America’s alternative to the New York UN conference is “nothing.” This does not simply obstruct international efforts to end the war and deliver justice to the Palestinians, but threatens the stability of the entire Middle East. Gaza is merely the most immediate and visible example.
By opposing everything that does not align with the agenda of the Israeli far-right, America isolates itself from the rest of the world.
The New York conference will proceed with or without American approval, and it is expected to secure further recognition of the Palestinian state by other countries. Meanwhile, the American alternative—“nothing”—only serves to give Israel free rein to destabilize the region with US funding, leaving Washington drained of credibility and standing, and pushing further away the possibility of President Trump ever being considered for a Nobel Peace Prize.
Yousef Ramadan is Ambassador of Palestine to Bangladesh
