Danon tells 'Post' how coronavirus affects Israeli diplomacy at the UN
“Naturally, when the UN activity is on hold, the anti-Israel activity is on-hold as well.”
By OMRI NAHMIASUnited Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres addresses the opening of the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly (photo credit: REUTERS/LUCAS JACKSON)
WASHINGTON – The COVID-19 outbreak has disrupted daily life in New York, including at United Nations headquarters. How does it affect Israel?“The General Assembly is not closed officially, but it will not meet unless there is something urgent on the agenda,” Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon told The Jerusalem Post. “Naturally, when the UN activity is on hold, the anti-Israel activity is on hold as well,” he said.The Palestinians considered asking the General Assembly to pass a resolution against the Trump administration’s peace plan, but it is not on the agenda anymore, Danon said. A Palestinian conference that was supposed to take place to discuss the status of Palestinian women and to condemn Israel will now become a one-hour discussion, he said.“The UN is still active but in a different form,” Danon said. “Many events are taking place in a video conference. As for the UN Security Council, on Tuesday, they will decide if the planned meeting next month regarding the Middle East will take place in the regular format or in a video call.”“I believe in soft diplomacy,” he said. “That means I am trying to hold as many face-to-face meetings and briefings as I can. These meetings are not happening right now. We are not yet at a stage that it is causing damage to the bilateral relations of Israel and other countries. But it is hurting the ongoing work because diplomacy is built on the principle of ongoing communications.”Regarding a possible delay of reconvening the General Assembly, Danon said: “I think that if by June there is not going to be a significant change, it would be under consideration. As of now, people are still optimistic that things will change for the better.”“The Israeli mission to the UN is working remotely, with team meetings being held mostly online,” he said. “The situation forced us to cancel many events, including the traditional ambassador’s Seder at the UN. But at the same time, it is also an opportunity to promote other things that we were working on, such as recognizing Jewish refugees from Arab countries and condemning Hamas in the General Assembly.”“We are now at a point where nations are looking inside instead of trying to understand how they can help each other,” Danon said. “I hope we will soon see countries reaching out to help one another.”
