TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said that the veto of the United Nations draft resolution for full Palestinian UN membership would not deter Indonesia's unwavering support for Palestine.

“It is indeed very unfortunate that a member of the UN Security Council vetoed it. But that doesn't mean that we will stop. We will continue to try,” Retno said at the Presidential Palace, Jakarta, on Friday, April 26.

The United States on Thursday, April 18, vetoed a draft resolution recommending that the UN General Assembly recognize Palestine as a state. The United Kingdom and Switzerland abstained, while the other 12 members of the UN Security Council voted in favor.

Palestine is currently a non-member observer state, a de facto recognition of statehood granted by the UN General Assembly in 2012. However, a full membership bid needs to be approved by the Security Council and at least two-thirds of the General Assembly.

Retno said there was no specific instruction given to the Indonesian UN representatives in response to the veto, and that Indonesia would remain steadfast in its support for Palestine's bid for full UN membership.

Retno added that Indonesia would continue to conduct relentless diplomacy to support the struggle of the Palestinian people and communicate with its partners in seeking peace and stability in the Middle East. This is especially crucial given Israel's ongoing war in the Gaza Strip and the recent Israel-Iran conflict.

As part of Indonesia's ongoing efforts, Retno spoke by telephone with her Hungarian and Canadian counterparts on the sidelines of the G7 foreign ministers' meeting in Italy last week. Additionally, during the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit in Gambia on May 4-5, Retno will attend a foreign ministers' meeting to discuss the Palestinian issue.

“It is an obligation for all of us to strive towards de-escalating the situation in a bid to prevent the conflict from spreading anywhere,” Retno Marsudi remarked.

DANIEL A. FAJRI

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