Palestine will assume leadership of the G77 + China bloc.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will assume the official leadership of the Group of 77 (G77), which includes China, the largest bloc of developing countries in the UN.
247, with Prensa Latina - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will assume the official leadership of the Group of 77 (G77), which includes China, the largest bloc of developing countries in the UN.
Egypt will hand over the presidency to Palestine after the General Assembly decided, by an overwhelming majority last October, to temporarily grant a United Nations observer state the right to lead this important bloc.
By assuming leadership of the bloc, Palestine will be able to jointly sponsor proposals and amendments with other countries, as well as formulate declarations and raise procedural motions.
Despite majority support in the General Assembly, Israel and the United States expressed strong opposition to granting rights to Palestinians at the UN.
The creation and recognition of the Palestinian State is one of the longest-standing issues in the international organization, even though the State of Israel has existed for 70 years.
After more than 50 years of illegal Israeli occupation and violent repression against the Palestinian people, the situation in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank worsens daily for the civilian population, who are deprived of their ancestral territories and suffer shortages caused by blockades imposed by the Israeli aggressors.
The day before, Abbas met with UN Secretary-General António Guterres and conveyed to him the growing concern of his people regarding Israel's aggression.
For this reason, he highlighted the need to implement the resolutions of the UN General Assembly and Security Council that seek to provide international protection to Palestinians in the face of attacks from Tel Aviv.
Guterres reiterated that the two-state solution is the only viable option for sustainable peace in the region.
The Palestinian president also met with the president of the 73rd session of the General Assembly, María Fernanda Espinosa, who was very pleased with the "fruitful meeting".
In light of the upcoming Palestinian presidency of the G77 plus China, the Ecuadorian diplomat said, we hope to work together to make the UN more relevant to all people.
This bloc, when it was created in 1964, had 77 nations, hence its name G77 - including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Thailand and India - and now encompasses 134 countries and represents about 80% of the world's population.