"The UN General Assembly is set to meet on Thursday at 5 P.M. Israel time (10 A.M. EST) for an emergency discussion on the unilateral American recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Turkey and Yemen requested the meeting after an Egyptian draft resolution against the recognition was presented to the Security Council and was vetoed by the United States, although the 14 other members of the council voted for it.
The United States does not have veto power in the General Assembly and therefore it is believed that the resolution will be approved by that body. Although the significance of the vote is mainly symbolic, and is intended to underscore previous UN resolutions supporting a two-state solution based on the 1967 lines and rejecting changes in the status of Jerusalem, Israel's ambassadors worldwide have been directed to reduce the expected damage to Israel's image by employing PR efforts and urging more countries to oppose the resolution along with the United States.
In an urgent cable to Israeli diplomatic missions, the ambassadors were asked to seek meetings with high-level officials to persuade them to direct their representatives at the UN to oppose, not to support, or at the very least not to deliver a speech at the General Assembly. Among the reasons ambassadors were told to cite are that Jerusalem was the de facto capital of Israel long before the United States recognized it as such; a resolution of this kind at the United Nations will damage American efforts toward a peace agreement in the region; the resolution will spur terror and violence in the area; and unilateral steps in the United Nations do more harm than good. The envoys will also pledge to maintain freedom of religion and the status quo in the city.
The Foreign Ministry is planning to focus its efforts on Eastern European countries and some African countries with which ties have grown stronger over recent years.
However, the ministry also concedes the problematic timing of the meeting: a few days before Christmas, a time when most European capitals members of the diplomatic services are on vacation, which will make things difficult for the ambassadors. The Israeli mission to the United Nations is also working to prevent embarrassment to the United States and Israel and is acting in concert with the American mission, with the main goal of reducing the number of states delivering a speech at the General Assembly.
Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said to Haaretz that 'these are futile discussions with no chance. We have no doubt that the resolution will pass. However, the resolution holds no implications, and we call upon Palestinians to stop the incitement and return to the negotiating table.'
An emergency meeting of the General Assembly can be called in cases when member states believe that the Security Council has failed in its mission to maintain international peace and security. To call the meeting by means of a regular majority instead of the usual two-thirds majority, the Yemenite and Turkish representatives are using the forum of a regular open meeting, which has taken place since 1997, on the subject of 'Illegal Israeli actions in occupied East Jerusalem and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory.'..."