[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 146 (Monday, October 3, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1745-E1746]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         PALESTINIANS AT THE UN

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. CAROLYN B. MALONEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, October 3, 2011

  Mrs. MALONEY. Mr. Speaker, while the Palestinians engage in political 
theater at the United Nations, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict gets no 
closer to resolution and the Palestinians get no closer to a real 
state. A Palestinian state can only come about through direct talks 
between Israel and the Palestinians. Instead of working toward peace, 
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is engaging in political theater 
that will leave the Palestinian people even more frustrated with the 
lack of tangible results.
  I am pleased that President Barack Obama stood up at the United 
Nations General Assembly and told the world that ``Peace will not come 
through statements and resolutions at the U.N.'' It was a brave speech 
that will make him less popular in many quarters, but it was the right 
thing to do.
  America believes in a two state solution. Israel believes in a two 
state solution. The Quartet believes in a two state solution. But there 
is a big difference between a theoretical ideal and the nuts and bolts 
of defining a new country's borders, ensuring the security of its 
neighbors, and resolving open issues regarding refugees and water 
rights. And while Israel has conceded the right of the Palestinians to 
have their own state, the Palestinians have never acknowledged the 
right of Israel to exist as a Jewish state.
  The fig leaf of an agreement between Hamas and the Palestinian 
Authority cannot hide the fact that the two factions remain at war with 
one another for control and that Hamas remains determined to erase 
Israel from the globe. They have managed to maintain an uneasy truce in 
order to secure international approbation, but it is unlikely to last. 
If Hamas wins the struggle or remains a significant element of the 
government without renouncing terrorism and its determination to 
destroy Israel, then the fledgling Palestinian state would be 
established with the intent of waging war on Israel. That is an 
unacceptable outcome, particularly if the UN, which was founded to 
promote peace, serves as the midwife to the new state.
  What we are witnessing at the United Nations is nothing more than a 
popularity contest. And when it comes to a popularity contest, the 
Palestinians win. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation has 57 
states. There is only one Jewish state.
  UN recognition of a Palestinian State will yield few changes in the 
lives of most Palestinians. The most significant tangible result

[[Page E1746]]

would be an ability to bring cases against Israel in international 
legal bodies that are often hostile to the Jewish state. But ordinary 
Palestinians will soon realize that their lives are little changed. 
Their disappointment will further destabilize the region and leave us 
farther from a resolution to the conflict.
  At the end of the day, the Palestinians' gambit will bring them no 
closer to peace, no closer to established borders and no closer to 
economic stability. It will, however, leave Israel more isolated, more 
vulnerable and less secure. I applaud President Obama and both the 
Democratic and Republican leadership of Congress for taking a 
principled stand against an unprincipled effort. Peace can only come 
from the bargaining table.

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