AS the United Nations Security Council starts to grapple with the Palestinian State application to become a member of the United Nations (UN), there are strong diplomatic claims at the UN that Nigeria would abstain from the vote due to the United States and Israeli pressure.
But others say Nigeria cannot do such a thing considering long-standing diplomatic recognition of the Palestinian State by the Federal Government.
Already, the Palestinians are planning to send a high-powered diplomatic delegation to Abuja as Nigeria's position is becoming more controversial amid conflicting signals emerging about Federal Government's position on the matter.
In fact, the Palestinian Permanent Observer at the United Nations, Amb. Riyad H. Mansour, disclosed to reporters late on Monday that the Palestinian authority was dispatching a high-level diplomatic delegation to Nigeria to secure Nigeria's continued support for the Palestinian Statehood bid at the UN.
Questions were raised last week when President Goodluck Jonathan addressed the UN General Assembly on Wednesday, and was completely silent on the issue of Palestinian Statehood, one of the dominant themes in speeches by most heads of state including South Africa, U.S. and several African states.
The President's silence is being perceived as Nigeria's indecision on the issue, especially since U.S. Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, visited Jonathan the previous night in New York seeking Nigeria's support for U.S. campaign to halt the Palestinian UN membership request.
Although Nigeria's Foreign Affairs Minister, Mr. Gbenga Ashiru, has already restated Nigeria's support for Palestine, considering the long-standing relationship between the Nigerian government and the Palestinians, the minister at his press briefing with Nigerian reporters last Friday evening did not say categorically that Nigeria would vote in support of the bid at the UN Security Council when it comes to a vote.
In contrast, South Africa and the U.S., for instance have made their positions very clear on exactly how they will vote. While South Africa has said it will vote to support the bid, the Americans have vowed to veto the bid.
Equally, no Nigerian government official has yet directly denied the formal statement made by the Israeli Defence Ministry last week, (or show any evidence to the contrary) that President Goodluck Jonathan had agreed in a meeting last week in New York with Ehud Barak, Israel's Defence Minister, to support Israel and oppose the Palestinian bid at the UN.
In a Jerusalem Post news story last week Tuesday titled "Barak convinces Nigeria to vote against PA UN state bid," it was stated that "Ehud Barak has convinced Nigeria not to support the Palestinian statehood bid, a statement from the Defense Ministry reported on Tuesday."
The report continued: "As part of the lobbying efforts, Defense Minister Ehud Barak, met in New York Tuesday with Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan. The meeting between the two was set up about a week ago, and - according to the statement put out by Barak's office - was coordinated both with Netanyahu and the U.S."
But speaking late on Monday at the UN after the UN Security Council decided to open a formal meeting on the Palestinian bid today, Mansour disclosed that Nigeria is among the "friendly nations," with the Palestinians noting that Nigeria has always recognised Palestine as a state and an Ambassador from Palestine had always been accepted in Nigeria.
Mansour added that the Palestinians are counting on the fact that 131 member-states of the UN have already recognised the State of Palestine, nine of whom are current members of the UN Security Council including Nigeria.
But the Palestinian observer at the UN said he was aware that the U.S. was mounting pressure on Nigeria and Gabon on the Security Council to defeat the application of the Palestinians submitted to the UN Secretary-General last Friday and which was reviewed in consultations by the Council on Monday afternoon.
The Guardian