Friday’s joint statement comes as Russia circulated a competing draft resolution to Council members that does not authorise the creation of a board of peace or the immediate deployment of an international force in Gaza, according to the text seen on Friday by AFP.
The Russian version welcomes “the initiative that led to the ceasefire” but does not name Trump.
It also only calls on the UN secretary-general to submit a report that addresses the possibilities of deploying an international stabilisation force in war-ravaged Gaza.
The United States has called the ceasefire “fragile”, and warned on Friday of the risks of not adopting its draft.
“Any refusal to back this resolution is a vote either for the continued reign of Hamas terrorists or for the return to war with Israel, condemning the region and its people to perpetual conflict,” the US ambassador to the United Nations, Mike Waltz, wrote in The Washington Post.
“Every departure from this path, be it by those who wish to play political games or to relitigate the past, will come with a real human cost.”
While it seemed until now that Council members supported principles of the peace plan, diplomatic sources noted that there were questions about the US text, particularly regarding the absence of a monitoring mechanism by the Council, the role of the Palestinian Authority, and details of the ISF’s mandate.
The Russian UN mission said in a statement that its alternative proposal differed by recognising the principle of a “two-State solution for the Israeli-Palestinian settlement”.
“Unfortunately, these provisions were not given due regard in the US draft,” it said.
Source: CNA
