Italy abstained in a United Nations General Assembly vote on Friday urging the Security Council to reconsider and support Palestine's request to join the world body because as G7 president "it has a duty to take an extremely balanced position", according to foreign minister Antonio Tajani.
A total 143 nations approved the Arab and Palestinian-sponsored resolution with the United States and Israel among nine countries who voted against and Italy among 25 countries that abstained.
"The majority of the G7 countries had a clear position: the US voted against, with Japan and France in favour. The majority in the end voted to abstain," Tajani told daily Corriere della Sera in an interview on Monday.
"Thanks to us a median position was held," Tajani said.
The Palestinians are currently a non-member observer state at the UN. Their push for full UN membership comes amid growing outrage over the mounting death toll in Gaza during Israel's seven-month-old war against Hamas and fears Israel will launch a full-scale offensive in the southern city of Rafah where over a million Palestinians are sheltering
Friday's vote reflected wide global support for Palestine, although the 15-member Security Council and then the General Assembly must approve an application for full UN membership, with a US veto likely.
