The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution allowing Mahmoud Abbas to attend the meetings remotely after the United States denied the Palestinian president a visa to participate in the General Assembly meetings.
The resolution was adopted in a vote at the UN General Assembly with the support of 152 countries, while three countries voted against it and four abstained.
Abbas will address the UN by video
Under the adopted resolution, Mahmoud Abbas will be able to participate in the UN General Assembly's high-level meetings with a prerecorded video message, despite being unable to travel to New York.
The resolution covers not only Abbas's address but also the remote participation of other senior Palestinian officials in certain UN meetings over the next year if they are unable to travel.
US, Israel and Paraguay oppose resolution
The United States, Israel and Paraguay opposed the resolution in the vote. Colombia, Honduras, Panama and Peru abstained.
The resolution was therefore adopted by the UN General Assembly by 152 votes to 3.
US denies Abbas a visa
The Washington administration extended visa restrictions on officials from the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority. As a result, Mahmoud Abbas and other senior Palestinian officials will be unable to attend the meetings in New York in person.
The US State Department cited its view that the Palestinian Authority had failed to fulfill its reform commitments and continued to pursue the Israeli-Palestinian issue through international institutions and courts as the reason for its decision.
The Palestinian Authority opposed Washington's decision, arguing that the visa restrictions were unjustified and harmed the diplomatic process.
He will participate by video for a second time
Mahmoud Abbas also addressed the UN General Assembly remotely last year after being unable to obtain a visa from the United States. Under the UN's new resolution, Abbas will participate in the General Assembly's high-level meetings by video for the second consecutive time.
The high-level General Debate of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly will begin in New York on September 22.
