Poll Popularity Plummet
Poll Popularity Plummet
German poll confirms declining US popularity in Asia, Middle East & North Africa, Putin twice as popular as Biden, US induces Pacific “micro-states” to vote against Palestinian UN membership.
Popularity of US falling globally
While both China and Russia have improved their standing in the world over the past year, the US has seen its approval rating deteriorate in the Middle East and even in Europe, according to respondents from 53 countries. Dubbed the Democracy Perception Index 2024, the survey was compiled by the German company Latana, on behalf of Alliance of Democracies, an NGO headed by former NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen.
Russia and China are now viewed as positively as the US in most of the surveyed countries in Asia and the Middle East/North Africa (MENA), as Washington’s approval has plummeted due to the conflict in Gaza. Among Europeans, support for the US has also seen a decline.
“For the first time since the start of the Biden administration, many Western European countries have returned to net negative perceptions of the US,” according to Frederick DeVeaux, the senior researcher at Latana.
The reversal of previously positive attitudes has been “particularly stark in Germany, Austria, Ireland, Belgium and Switzerland,” DeVeaux said.
America’s global reputation has taken a beating since last year, in particular in Muslim-majority countries surveyed – Algeria, Egypt, Indonesia, Malaysia, Morocco, and Türkiye. The researchers attributed this to President Joe Biden’s unequivocal support for Israel’s war on Gaza.
Meanwhile, sentiments on Russia and China in every region except Europe are steadily getting more positive, the survey found.
The European region is the only one besides the US that still supports cutting economic ties with Russia over the Ukraine conflict, while the rest of the world wants to maintain business links with Moscow. The world is also divided “between the West and the rest” when it comes to sanctioning Beijing if it were to “invade” the island of Taiwan.
The Democracy Perception Index is an annual survey carried out in 53 countries. This year’s research canvassed some 63,000 respondents for opinions about “democracy, geopolitics and global power players.”
Read more here.
Russian Gains in Mideast and Africa
Moscow and Beijing are already playing more important roles in the Middle East and North Africa than ten years ago, and in another decade could rival Washington’s influence in the region, according to a recent opinion poll.
The poll was conducted by Al-Monitor in partnership with data analytics firm Premise across Egypt, Türkiye, Iraq and Tunisia between March 4 and March 22, 2024, and questioned 2,670 respondents in the four states about their views on power dynamics in the region.
When asked which of the three world leaders they viewed “most favorably,” some 44.4% chose Russian President Vladimir Putin, followed by Chinese President Xi Jinping with some 33.8%, while only 21.7% said they preferred US President Joe Biden.
Putin was seen more favorably across all four states, most of all in Egypt (51.6%). Biden was slightly more popular in Iraq (29.2%) of all states, but still polled third after Putin (35.5%) and Xi (35.3%).
Al-Monitor suggested that Washington’s popularity suffered due to its support of Israel’s war in Gaza, but noted that a multitude of other factors could be influencing opinions. The respondents were almost split on whether Washington (30%) or Moscow (28%) could “most successfully mediate political disagreements in the Middle East.” However, over 40% agreed that the US was still “best equipped to help resolve the Israel-Hamas war,” compared to Russia’s 27.9% and China’s 13.4%.
Almost half of respondents saw Russia (49.5%) and China (47.9%) playing “more important regional roles” than 10 years ago, while only 37.1% could say the same about the US. In another decade, Beijing (28.9%) would rival Washington (29%) as the “most influential” in the Middle East, they said.
Those polled said they would like their governments to “forge closer ties” with Beijing (43.2%) and Moscow (39.7%), while only 29.7% sought more cooperation with Washington.
Almost two-thirds of participants believe Chinese economic investment has had a positive impact on their country, while 52.3% saw positives in economic cooperation with Russia. The US economic investment was seen as positive by 39.7%, while 29.8% reported negatives.
Read more here.
UNGA vote on Palestine.
The draft resolution follows the veto cast by United States at the Security Council on 18 April, which blocked Palestine’s admission as a full UN Member State. That draft resolution, submitted by non-permanent Council member Algeria, had received 12 votes in favour, with Switzerland and the United Kingdom abstaining.
Draft resolution passed overwhelmingly
The vote is in. It has passed overwhelmingly with 143 countries in favour, nine against and 25 abstaining.
The Assembly just voted to pass the draft resolution as long as two thirds agree.
What does the resolution mean?
Here’s a quick recap of what this means: by adopting this resolution the General Assembly will upgrade the rights of the State of Palestine within the world body, but not the right to vote or put forward its candidature to such organs as the Security Council or the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
Granting Palestinian membership requires a recommendation from the Security Council. At the same time, the Assembly determines that the State of Palestine is qualified for such status and recommends that the Security Council “reconsider the matter favourably”.
None of the upgrades in status will take effect until the new session of the Assembly opens on 10 September.
Here are some of the changes in status that Palestine will have a right to later this year:
To be seated among Member States in alphabetical order
Make statements on behalf of a group
Submit proposals and amendments and introduce them
Co-sponsor proposals and amendments, including on behalf of a group
Propose items to be included in the provisional agenda of the regular or special sessions and the right to request the inclusion of supplementary or additional items in the agenda of regular or special sessions
The right of members of the delegation of the State of Palestine to be elected as officers in the plenary and the Main Committees of the General Assembly
Full and effective participation in UN conferences and international conferences and meetings convened under the auspices of the General Assembly or, as appropriate, of other UN organs.
Read our explainer on Palestine’s status at the UN here.
Draft resolution on Palestine
No voting rights
The draft resolution also notes that as an observer State, Palestine does not have the right to vote in the General Assembly or to put forward its candidature to UN organs such as the Security Council or the Economic and Social Council.
If adopted, the resolution’s provisions would only apply from the start of the 79th session of the General Assembly, which gets underway in mid-September 2024.
Draft resolutions do not represent the official position of the General Assembly until they are formally adopted.
Once the resolution is voted on, the whole issue of Palestine’s status will return to the 15-member Security Council for further consideration, where any effort to attain full membership is likely to be blocked again by the United States, which holds veto power alongside the organ’s other permanent members – China, France, Russia and the United Kingdom.
The majority of the General Assembly will have had their say, however, amid the continuing crisis.
Saudi Arabia: Re-establish the truth
Saudi Arabian Ambassador Abdulaziz Alwasil recalled General Assembly resolutions adopted over the years that reaffirmed the rights of the Palestinian people, including their right to self-determination.
“The resolution presented today is fully in line with those resolutions. It seeks to implement the will of the international community and contribute to building true peace in the Middle East based on the two-State solution,” he said.
“It is high time for the international community to re-establish the truth because the world can no longer ignore the suffering of the Palestinian people that has lasted for decades,” he added.
China: Resolution reflects the will of the international community
Ambassador FU Cong of China said that Palestine should have the same status as Israel and that Palestinian people should enjoy the same rights as Israeli people.
“It is the common responsibility of the international community to support and advance the process of Palestinian independent Statehood, and provide strong support for the implementation of the two-State solution and a lasting peace in the Middle East,” he said.
He further noted that on the Palestinian-Israeli issue, the United States repeatedly used its veto “in an unjustified attempt” to obstruct the international community’s efforts to correct the “historical injustice long visited on Palestine”.
“It is not commensurate with the role of a responsible major country,” he said.
He also recalled the overwhelming support for the General Assembly resolution, adopted earlier in the day, reaffirming the right of Palestinian people to self-determination and recommending that the Security Council reconsider favourably its application to join the United Nations.
“China welcomes this historic resolution, which reflects the will of the international community,” Ambassador Fu said.
“We believe that the special modalities adopted within the limits permitted by the UN Charter will enable the international community to listen more adequately to the voice of Palestine and help it to talk and negotiate with Israel on a more equal footing.”
France: High time for political solution
French Ambassador Nicolas de Rivière said his country voted in favour of the resolution, noting also the clarifications provided in the text on the right to vote and the right to be elected, which are the prerogatives of Member States alone.
“France recalls that the procedure for admitting a new Member State is defined by the UN Charter, and it must not be circumvented,” he said.
He also noted that France is in favour of the admission of Palestine as a full member of the Organization, which is why it voted in favour at the Security Council last month.
Reiterating his country’s condemnation of the terrorist attacks by Hamas and other groups on 7 October, Ambassador de Rivière stated France’s demand for a ceasefire and release of all hostages.
“The offensive that has started in Rafah risks causing numerous victims and displacing people at a time where nowhere can be deemed safe today in Gaza. There is further risk of disrupting delivery of aid,” he said, expressing his country’s opposition to the military operation.
“All parties must do everything they can to protect civilians and guarantee access for humanitarian aid. It is high time to mobilise for a political solution,” he added.
Russia: A moral duty
Russia's Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia criticisied the US, saying that the resolution is complicated because it is attempting to advance Palestinian membership as far as possible without provoking another veto from Washington on full membership.
He said Palestine deserves nothing less than full membership at the UN.
“It is the moral duty of everyone," he said.
“Only full-fledged membership will allow Palestine to stand alongside other members of the Organization and enjoy the rights that this status implies.”
Palestinian flag ‘flies high and proud’
Riyad Mansour, Permanent Observer of the observer State of Palestine, recounted the devastating impacts of the ongoing war in Gaza, with over 35,000 Palestinians killed, a further 80,000 injured and over two million displaced.
“No words can capture what such loss and trauma signify for Palestinians, their families, their communities and for our nation as whole,” he said.
He added that the Palestinians in Gaza have been pushed to the “very edge” of the Strip “to the very brink of life” with “bombs and bullets haunting them”.
Mr. Mansour highlighted that despite the attacks and destruction, the flag of Palestine “flies high and proud” in Palestine and across the globe, becoming a “symbol raised by all those who believe in freedom and its just rule”.
‘Lives cannot be restored’
“It is true that we will not disappear, but the lives lost cannot be restored,” he stated.
The Permanent Observer said people have to make a decision: stand by the right of a nation to live in freedom and dignity on its ancestral land, standing with peace and recognising the rights of Palestinians or they can stand on the sidelines of history.
Mr. Mansour said after holding observer status for 50 years, “we wish from all those who invoke the UN Charter to abide by the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination guaranteed by the Charter.”
“A ‘yes’ vote is a vote for Palestinian existence; it is not against any State, but it is against attempts to deprive us of our State,” he added, stating that it would be an investment in peace and empowering the forces of peace.
Security Council must heed global call for Palestinian statehood: UAE
On behalf of the Arab Group, Mohamed Issa Hamad Mohamed Abushahab, Permanent Representative of the United Arab Emirates to the UN, introduced the draft resolution, saying it recommends that the Security Council reconsider Palestine’s full UN membership application.
“Today marks a defining moment,” he said.
The State of Palestine has demonstrated that it deserves full membership in the international community by acceding to international treaties, adhering to the UN Charter and meeting requirements of statehood. In addition, more than 140 countries now recognise Palestine as a State, he said.
Voting for the resolution amid the ongoing conflict would support the two-State solution to the crisis, he said, adding that the Security Council must respond to the will of the international community.
Middle East on course for ‘full-scale catastrophe’, warns Francis
The President of the General Assembly Dennis Francis said from the podium of the Assembly Hall that the Israel-Palestine crisis was the original crisis before the world body when it was founded in 1946.
Peace has remained elusive, and today has become an untenable situation that is deteriorating "at an alarming speed", he told delegates.
This is “bringing countless innocent victims into its deadly fold and pushing the region further to the brink of full-scale catastrophe”.
He urged the international community to not look away from the dire situation that has unfolded since the 7 October terror attacks and the ensuing Israeli devastation of Gaza.
End the scourge of war
“Today, let us remember the legacy from which we hail. We stand proudly upon the shoulders of those who, many decades ago, recognised their ultimate responsibility to forge a peace that will banish the scourge and terror of war,” he urged.
“I therefore call upon the membership to purposely assess the situation before us, with nothing else in mind but a commitment to peace as our utmost ambition,” he said.
He called upon the parties to the conflict, supported by nations with leverage, tourgently come to an agreement on a ceasefire to bring to an end to the suffering of countless people and secure the release of all hostages.
“We must believe in the essential goodness of others," he said, and “in the understanding that no problem of human relations is insoluble”, calling on them to help bring lasting peace, save lives and end the violence.
The President of the General Assembly Dennis Francis invited the Assembly to recognise the fact that some members are in arrears with their mandatory contributions. If you don't pay up, you lose your vote. Those are the rules. But, there are exceptions that have been made, including today.
Aid operations have come to a standstill since the start of the military’s ground operation in Rafah this week, with an estimated 100,000 Palestinians displaced once again in a highly fluid situation, according to humanitarians.
The Assembly is also expected to vote on a draft resolution, co-sponsored by a group of countries, concerning the status of the observer State of Palestine at the United Nations.
US induces Pacific “micro-states” to vote against Palestinian UN membership
Nine UN member states voted on Friday against supporting Palestine's bid for full membership in the world body, including the United States. Most of these countries also voted against Palestine being granted non-member observer state status in 2012.
United States of America
The US, Israel's strongest ally at the UN, had declared earlier on Friday that it would vote against the resolution in the General Assembly.
Before the vote, Nate Evans, spokesman for the US mission to the UN said Washington would be voting “no” on the resolution and encouraged other member states to do the same.
He added that, “should the General Assembly adopt this resolution and refer the Palestinian membership application back to the Security Council, we expect a similar outcome to what occurred in April”.
On April 18, the US vetoed a Security Council resolution that would have approved Palestine's bid for full membership.
Israel
Israel has consistently voted against Palestine's membership in the UN. In 2012, it voted, along with the US, against it receiving observer status in the world body.
Before Friday's vote, Israel's ambassador Gilad Erdan physically fed a copy of the UN Charter into a shredder to illustrate what he said was the General Assembly's disregard for the document.
And Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said after the vote that the decision was a “prize for Hamas”.
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic has historically been more pro-Israel and pro-US. Its UN representative told the 193 member states after the vote on Friday that the people in the region deserve the prospect of a peaceful solution that will permanently resolve the conflict.
Jakub Kulhanek said that UN membership will not bring peace and prosperity to Palestinians, adding that this can only be done at the negotiating table, where all parties will need to “make difficult political decisions and compromises – and that is actually what we should all strive for”.
He encouraged the region to “embark on a path of co-operation including through the Abraham Accords to foster a better future for the Middle East”.
Hungary
Along with the Czech Republic, Hungary is one of Israel's closest allies in Europe.
Viktor Orban, the Hungarian Prime Minister, has had a close relationship with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu for many years.
In October, Hungary voted against a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza.
Argentina
Argentina has historically strong relations with both Israel and Arab countries, and it recognised the State of Palestine as “free and independent”, “within the borders existing in 1967" in 2010.
New President Javier Milei visited Israel in February and has pledged to move his nation’s embassy to Jerusalem, indicating a significant change in Buenos Aires's foreign policy, following years of supporting Arab nations.
Mr Milei has also announced that his government will declare Hamas a proscribed terrorist group, noting that Argentine citizens were among the hundreds of people taken hostage by the group on October 7.
Micronesia
Papua New Guinea
Palau
Nauru
The Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, and Palau are small Pacific island states and have historically aligned their votes closely with the US. In 2010, for example, Micronesia voted in agreement with the US 47 times and diverged only three times.
Palau's voting record has aligned with that of the US about 96.5 per cent of the time.
Richard Gowan, UN director for International Crisis Group, told The National this group of hard “no” voters is “mostly predictable”.
He pointed out that what was striking is that a number of US allies, like Australia, that might have not supported this resolution six months ago, decided to do so on Friday.
“I do think the prolonged war in Gaza has shifted the overall mood in the UN about the need to get to a two-state solution.”
Read more here.