Grace Levin
Advisor for Management and Reform
U.S. Mission to the United Nations
New York, New York
December 30, 2020
AS DELIVERED
Thank you, Mr. Chair. The United States strongly supports UNIFIL in implementing its important mandate. However, the use of General Assembly funding resolutions to pursue claims against a Member State is not procedurally correct. This is the reason why we have opposed the General Assembly resolution on this item in previous years since they required Israel to pay for costs stemming from the Q’ana incident of 1996. These resolutions were not consensus resolutions.
Since shortly after the founding of the United Nations, the procedure which has been followed is that the Secretary-General presents and pursues the settlement of the Organization’s claims against a state or states. Using a funding resolution to legislate a settlement is inappropriate. It also politicizes the work of the General Assembly’s Fifth Committee, and should be avoided both now and in the future. We will support Israel’s proposed amendments.
Thank you.
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