Maldives questions international response to Gaza, calls for Palestinian UN membership
Latheef said the right to a sovereign future should apply to all people and argued that Palestinians continued to be denied that right.
The Maldives has called for Palestine to be granted full membership of the United Nations, while urging member states and the UN General Assembly to examine what they have done to end the violence against Palestinians.
Vice President Hussain Mohamed Latheef made the call while delivering the Maldives’ statement at the general debate of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly in New York.
Latheef said the right to a sovereign future should apply to all people and argued that Palestinians continued to be denied that right.
He said the consequences of the conflict were not limited to Palestinian sovereignty, arguing that Israeli military action had also affected the sovereignty and security of other countries in the region.
“One cannot ensure one’s own safety and security by undermining the safety and security of others,” Latheef said. “No country has the right to advocate respect for its own sovereignty while violating the sovereignty of others.”
He said political influence and alliances should not allow any state to avoid accountability.
Latheef also questioned whether condemnation alone was sufficient.
“But condemning these actions alone is not enough,” he said. “Every member state must ask what we have done to stop this violence. This General Assembly must ask itself the same question.”
The Vice President said the problem was not a lack of international law, but what he described as a lack of fairness in its application. International law, he said, should apply under the same rules and standards to all countries without exception.
He called for an end to what the Maldives described as Israel’s violations of international law and occupation of Palestinian territory, and urged the safe and rapid delivery of humanitarian assistance to Gaza.
Latheef also called for decisions by international courts to be respected and implemented.
The Vice President said a sovereign future for Palestinians meant the right to live in freedom and dignity, exercise self-determination and live in safety and security in their own state.
“The Maldives will always stand with the Palestinian people for these rights and for their future,” he said.
Latheef said granting Palestine full UN membership was necessary if the organisation wanted to restore confidence in the multilateral system.
“If we want to restore the credibility of this organisation and deliver results for everyone, Palestine must be made a full member state of the United Nations,” he said.
Palestine currently holds non-member observer state status at the UN rather than full membership. Earlier this month, the General Assembly voted 152-3, with four abstentions, to allow the State of Palestine to participate virtually in the 81st session’s high-level debate after the United States denied visas to the Palestinian delegation. The Maldives co-sponsored that resolution.
Latheef also addressed wider regional tensions, saying competition among major powers should not restrict the choices available to smaller states.
He condemned Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz and called for the waterway to remain open and safe for navigation.
The Vice President said disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz would raise oil prices, with consequences for food supplies and air travel. He said countries such as the Maldives would feel the effects through the tourism industry and public finances.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres, in his opening address to the General Assembly this week, also called for fighting in the Middle East to stop, humanitarian assistance to flow and navigational rights and freedoms to be restored in accordance with international law.
