TT abstains in UN vote rejecting Jerusalem as Israel’s capital

Trinidad and Tobago was one of 35 countries that abstained in the vote on the United Nations resolution rejecting US President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

A total of 128 countries voted in favour of the resolution and nine voted against it. CARICOM states that abstained were Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Jamaica and Haiti. The US neighbours Canada and Mexico abstained. Also abstaining in the hemisphere were the Dominican Republic, Panama, Argentina, Colombia and Paraguay.

The resolution, which was overwhelmingly approved yesterday at the UN General Assembly in New York was co-sponsored by Turkey, the chair of the summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, and Yemen, the chair of the Arab Group at the UN.

The NBC news reported that “the Palestinians and their Arab and Islamic supporters sought the UN General Assembly vote after the US on Monday vetoed a resolution that would have required Trump to rescind his declaration on Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and not move the US Embassy there.”

Trump has threatened to cut off US funding to countries that oppose his decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. US Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley also hinted in a tweet and a letter to most of the 193 UN member states on Tuesday that the US would retaliate against countries that vote in favour of the resolution calling on Trump to rescind his decision.

In the tweet Haley said Trump asked her to report back on countries “who voted against us” and said the US “will be taking names.”

In her letter sent to reportedly sent to over 180 countries, Haley said, the Trump administration was “simply asking that you acknowledge the historical friendship, partnership, and support we have extended and respect our decision about our own embassy.”

On Wednesday, the US media reported Trump telling his Cabinet, “For all these nations, they take our money and then vote against us. They take hundreds of millions of dollars, even billions of dollars and then they vote against us. We’re watching those votes. Let them vote against us. We’ll save a lot. We don’t care.”

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"TT abstains in UN vote rejecting Jerusalem as Israel’s capital"

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