U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley hosted a “Friends of the U.S.” reception Wednesday to thank the 64 diplomatic envoys whose nations did not support the UN General Assembly resolution in December 2017 rejecting President Donald Trump’s December 6, 2017 recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
These were the envoys who either voted outright to oppose the resolution, abstained, or who voted with their feet by not showing up for the vote at all.
“It’s easy for friends to be with you in the good times, but it’s the friends who are with you during the challenging times that will never be forgotten. Thank you to the 64,” Haley wrote in a tweet following the event.
The event was held at the building in which the U.S. Mission to the UN is located, across the street from the UN Headquarters in New York City.
“It’s easy for friends to be with you in the good times, but it’s the friends who are with you during the challenging times that will never be forgotten. Thank you to the 64.” pic.twitter.com/ja8NDw6vLv
— US Mission to the UN (@USUN)
U.S. President Donald Trump also addressed the guests in a brief pre-taped video, thanking the envoys whose nations had supported America.
Trump told them, “I want to thank all of all the nations represented here tonight for standing with the United States during the recent United Nations General Assembly vote on the status of Jerusalem.
“Rest assured that your actions on Thursday, December 21, will go down as a very important date; [and] were noted and greatly appreciated.
“The United States remains committed to achieving lasting peace between Israel and the Palestinians. There’s no reason that peace should not be entered into. We will continue to work with the partners like you to ensure a peaceful and prosperous future for the region, for the people, for the world. Thank you, God bless you, and have a great new year.”
Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon praised Haley’s leadership, and called the U.S. courageous.
“First, it was a courageous decision by President Trump and Ambassador Haley, and we thank the United States for this courageous decision… The US is continuing to show leadership in the Middle East, real leadership in the UN. There’s a lot of hypocrisy in the UN,” he told reporters on his way in to the event.