The United Nations General Assembly voted on Thursday by 128 to nine to declare US President Donald Trump’s move to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital “null and void.”
Despite the humiliation, both the United States and Israel claimed a degree of victory by highlighting the fact that 65 countries did not vote in favor of the resolution condemning Washington. They got the number by adding up “no” votes, abstentions and no-shows.
Among the 193 members of the UN General Assembly, nine voted against the resolution, 35 abstained and 21 countries did not turn up.
Thursday’s special session of the General Assembly was held at the request of Arab and Muslim countries after the US vetoed a draft resolution on Monday in the 15-member Security Council.
Togo was the only African state to vote against the resolution, according to a list published by Quartz magazine.
A number of African states including South Africa, Nigeria and Ethiopia voted for the resolution while others like Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and South Sudan abstained.
The US President Donald Trump had on Wednesday warned that he might cut financial aid to states who voted in favour of the resolution while the US ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, said the US would be “taking names” and “watching carefully” how countries voted.
Washington found itself isolated as many of its Western and Arab allies voted for the measure. Some of those allies, like Egypt, Jordan and Iraq, are major recipients of US military or economic aid, although the US threat to cut aid did not single out any country.
Botswana who are staunch US allies dismissed Trump’s threat, saying it would not be “intimidated” as it voted in favour of the resolution.
“Botswana will not be intimidated by such threats and will exercise her Sovereign right and vote based on her foreign policy principles, which affirm that Jerusalem is a fundamental final status issue, which must be resolved through negotiations in line with relevant United Nations resolutions,” the statement by Botswana’s Ministry of International Affairs said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has described the resolution as “preposterous.”
“Jerusalem is our capital, always was, always will be. But I do appreciate the fact that a growing number of countries refuse to participate in this theater of the absurd,” he said in a video on his Facebook page.
Israel captured East Jerusalem in a 1967 war and Palestinians want it as the capital of a future state they seek.
