ARABS-ISRAEL - March 12 - UN Backs Palestinian State.

The UN Security Council adopts a US-backed resolution, calling for "the immediate cessation of all acts of violence" and affirms "a vision of a region where two states, Israel and Palestine, live side by side within secure and recognised borders". The resolution is adopted by a vote of 14 to 0 with Syria abstaining. The US helped adopt a resolution, with US Ambassador to the UN John Negroponte saying after the vote: "Our intent in doing this was to give an impulse to peace efforts and to decry the violence and terror". (This is the first time that a Council resolution has explicitly referred to a Palestinian state existing alongside Israel. It is also the first time the US sponsored a resolution on the Israeli-Palestinian dispute since at least 1985 and perhaps even longer. Diplomats in New York said the US initiative appeared calculated to demonstrate that the Bush administration is committed to supporting Palestinian aspirations at a time when US Vice President Cheney is discussing possible military action against Iraq with Arab leaders). Although the resolution does not oblige the Council to deliver independence to the PA, it carries enormous symbolic importance for the Palestinian cause. PA representative Nasser Kidwa said the resolution would help "pave the way" for a comprehensive settlement of the conflict, adding: "This is a helpful resolution. It is the first time that the Security Council spells out the vision of two states". While Israel has long opposed a role for the Council in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian dispute, Israeli Ambassador Yehuda Lancry called the resolution "balanced" and said it could help restart negotiations.