The Media Line: Marco Rubio to UN: Reviving Palestinian Conference Is a ‘Publicity Stunt’ 

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Marco Rubio to UN: Reviving Palestinian Conference Is a ‘Publicity Stunt’ 

By The Media Line Staff 

The United States has formally opposed a United Nations proposal to resume the High-level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine, denouncing the initiative as ill-timed and counterproductive. 

In remarks delivered by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and addressed to Ting Wu, the UN’s deputy political counselor in New York, Washington voiced strong objections both to the resolution that mandated the conference and to the sudden push to advance its date to coincide with the UN General Assembly’s High-Level Week. 

Rubio said the United States was “surprised and dismayed” by the late addition of the proposal to the Assembly agenda, criticizing what he described as a lack of transparency about the text, financial implications, and feasibility of holding the event. He noted that Israel’s procedural concerns had not been adequately addressed. 

“Advancing the date is an ill-timed publicity stunt that undermines serious diplomatic efforts to end the conflict,” Rubio said. He warned the conference would not foster peace but instead “prolong the war, embolden Hamas, and undermine efforts to achieve peace.” 

He stressed that the United States would not participate in what he called “an insult to the victims of October 7th” and vowed Washington would instead remain focused on “serious diplomacy, not stage-managed conferences designed to manufacture the appearance of relevance.” 

Rubio added that the initiative “only emboldens Hamas, prolongs the war by undercutting our diplomatic efforts to end the suffering in Gaza, free the hostages, and move the Middle East towards a brighter and more prosperous future.” 

Concluding his remarks, he said: “For these reasons, the United States dissociates itself from the oral decision.”