Obama speech at the UN on Palestinian statehood – live

Obama speaking at the UN general assembly opening session amid plan to avoid showdown over Palestine – live coverage 10.18am: “It’s been a difficult decade but we stand at a crossroads in history,” says Obama, talking about the “extraordinary changes” that have taken place since the last such UN general assembly meeting a year ago. 10.17am: “The fact is: peace is hard – but our people demand it,” says Obama. “There are still convultions in our world that endanger us all.” Now he mentions that he took office at a time when the US was involved in two wars, and mentions Osama bin Laden and terrorism. “Today we’ve set a new direction. At the end of this year, America’s military operations in Iraq will be over,” says Obama: As we end the war in Iraq, America and its partners have begun a transition in Afghanistan. ending in 2014 … Let there be no doubt: the tide of war is receeding. “We are poised to end these wars in a position of strength,” says Obama. 10.11am: Obama is speaking now – and says his subject is peace, and harks back to the origins of the UN, quoting President Roosevelt about the search for a lasting peace. 10.10am: President Obama has arrived at the UN for his speech, which will start as soon as President Rousseff of Brazil concludes. It looks like she’s winding up – and Obama is being introduced. Here he comes. 10.04am: While we are waiting for Obama to begin speaking, here’s the latest by the Guardian’s Chris McGreal in New York on the plan emerging to avoid a showdown over Palestinian statehood: The deal is being pushed by the Middle East “Quartet” of the UN, EU, US and Russia, which is attempting to persuade Abbas to back away from a diplomatic confrontation with Washington, which says it will veto the Palestinian bid. The US president Barack Obama is expected to meet the Palestinian leader at the UN on Wednesday as Abbas comes under intense pressure from the US and Europe to compromise. Diplomats said the proposed compromise would see Abbas submit his letter to the security council, which would then defer action. In parallel, the Quartet would issue the framework for renewed negotiations that would include a timeline for the birth of a Palestinian state. 10am: Barack Obama is due to speak at the UN general assembly, in an address expected to cover a wide range of international issues but especially focussing on the Middle East and the so-called “Arab Spring” – as well as the controversial issue of the Palestinian statehood bid. You can follow our earlier live blogging coverage here . And you can leave your comments on Obama’s speech below. United Nations Barack Obama Palestinian territories Israel Middle East United States US politics Obama administration Richard Adams guardian.co.uk

Posted by on September 21, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.