ROME — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said before talks Monday with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry he would defy any U.N. move to "dictate" a time-frame for withdrawal from land Palestinians seek for a state. Before the two convened in Rome, Israel put the United States on notice it expected Washington to exercise its Security Council veto against any resolutions setting a time-frame.
Jordan has circulated a draft Palestinian resolution to the 15-member forum calling for Israeli occupation of Palestinian land to end by November 2016. U.S. officials have indicated that Washington didn't find the Palestinian draft acceptable, but said that with matters still fluid, it was premature to take a position on any particular Security Council resolution.
"Whether we have the nine votes at the Security Council or we don't, the decision has been taken to present the Palestinian-Arab resolution in the Security Council on Wednesday," said Wasel Abu Youssef, an official of the Palestine Liberation Organisation, the Palestinians' highest decision-making body. Shortly before leaving for Rome, Netanyahu said: "We will not accept attempts to dictate unilateral, time-bound moves to us," he told reporters. "I will say these things in the clearest manner. Even if there are dictates, we will stand up to them firmly."
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