Lack of progress for Middle East peace progress "great concern:" Venezuela

UNITED NATIONS, Nov. 30 (Xinhua) -- Venezuela said here Wednesday that the lack of progress towards the Middle East peace process is of "great concern," and voiced its support for an independent Palestine.

The statement came as Julio Escalona, Venezuelan deputy permanent representative to the UN, addressed the General Assembly in a plenary meeting on the question of Palestine.

Escalona noted Venezuela's "great concern" over the lack of progress in the peace process for the "unconditional right of the Palestinian people to self-determination."

"Since the establishment of the Committee of the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, the human drama that accompanies the Israeli-Arab political conflict has become more acute, and the access of the population from the occupied territories to their most basic rights turns more precarious every day," Escalona said.

The commission was set up by the UN General Assembly to promote the realization of internationally recognized Palestinian rights. The committee monitors the situation related to the question of Palestine and reports to the General Assembly or the Security Council.

"Therefore, Venezuela joins the voices that demand, unequivocally and without further delays, the end of the Israeli presence in the occupied territories, as a basic prerequisite for a broad, just, and lasting peace in the Middle East, and we reaffirm our full support to the recognition of the Palestinian State as a full member of the United Nations," Escalona said.

Palestine has made a significant attempt to claim its statehood in 2011, by submitting an application for full UN membership in September to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon who quickly forwarded the Palestinian bid to the UN Security Council. The bid is currently under discussion in the 15-nation council, where Israel's close ally, the U.S., is expected to use its veto power to stop the request.