Estonia supports UN General Assembly resolution on ending Israel’s occupation

TALLINN - At a vote held on Sept. 18 in New York, Estonia supported the UN General Assembly resolution that expresses support for the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and calls on Israel to end its occupation on Palestinian territory.

In July this year, the ICJ -- the world's main judicial body -- published its formal opinion on Israel's occupation in Palestinian territory, calling it unlawful. Informed by the advisory opinion of the ICJ, Palestine in September submitted a resolution to the UN General Assembly, demanding that Israel ends its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. At the vote held today, Estonia supported the resolution.

"The rules-based international order is very important for Estonia and we are convinced that international law must apply to all UN member states," Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said. He added that an important factor in casting the vote was that majority of the Nordic and Baltic states voted in favour of the resolution.

"Our vote for the resolution does not change our firm position that Israel has the inalienable right to self-defense and that Hamas is a terrorist organization whose actions should be condemned fully," Tsahkna underlined. "As these elements are not sufficiently highlighted in the text of the resolution, our explanatory declaration accompanying our vote stresses the need to consider the legitimate security interests of Israel."

The resolutions of the UN General Assembly are not legally binding; however, they indicate the positions of the majority of states on important issues.