Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Feb. 19 that the Palestinian Authority does not expect to “sever its ties”:http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/abbas-ties-with-u-s-won-t-be-severed-over-veto-of-un-settlement-resolution-1.344435 with the United States despite the latter’s move to veto a draft U.N. Security Council resolution that condemns Israeli settlement construction in the West Bank.
“We are not seeking to break from the U.S. administration and it is not in our interest to do that,” the Haaretz Daily Newspaper quotes Abbas. “We only want to protect our interest and our rights as guaranteed in international law.”
Meantime, diplomats who are lobbying to get countries recognize an independent Palestinian state said their next target is Western Europe. The move to Europe comes after Palestinian negotiators successfully secured recognition for a Palestinian state from eight countries in South America in December and January, The Washington Post says.
