Israel on the UN Security Council?

[Hat tip: TBIFOC, through TTLB]

[NOTE: Ouch. I write a whole post, then realize that this wouldn't apply for over 10 years - thereby reducing my hypothesis to garbage. But I'm going to post it anyway, and, I may as well submit it to Ian Schwartz's open trackback. Please, tell me what you think of the ideas, if it were possible in the near future - let's say, Syria being overrun by the United States.]

Ha'aretz reports:

Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said Tuesday that Israel will seek a seat on the UN Security Council for the first time, another sign of Israel's improved ties with the United Nations.

This would be interesting for a number of reasons. As TBIFOC notes:

Some may say that having the United States sitting at the table is a de facto seat for Israel, but remember that there have been quite a few times that the UN Abmassador from the USA has sat silently and abstained instead of exercising the veto as they were morally obligated to.

But perhaps this is not the point. To pose a hypothetical: Israel may feel it needs its own veto power on the court, in case something comes up against Israel which the USA would not veto. What would fall into this category? I can think of a number of possible reasons:

1) Attack on an Iranian nuclear plant, if the UN fails to stop Iran from building one. Sharon already warned the UN about Iran when he spoke to the General Assembly.

And we know that, even today, there are those who sit here as representatives of a country whose leadership calls to wipe Israel off the face of the earth, and no one speaks out.

The attempts of that country to arm itself with nuclear weapons must disturb the sleep of anyone who desires peace and stability in the Middle East and the entire world. The combination of murky fundamentalism and support of terrorist organizations creates a serious threat that every member nation in the U.N. must stand against.

2) Attack on Gaza in response to a terror attack. Sharon last week:

The most important test the Palestinian leadership will face is in fulfilling their commitment to put an end to terror and its infrastructures, eliminate the anarchic regime of armed gangs, and cease the incitement and indoctrination of hatred toward Israel and the Jews.

Until they do so, Israel will know how to defend itself from the horrors of terrorism. This is why we built the security fence, and we will continue to build it until it is completed, as would any other country defending its citizens.

I am among those who believe that it is possible to reach a fair compromise and coexistence in good neighborly relations between Jews and Arabs. However, I must emphasize one fact: There will be no compromise on the right of the State of Israel to exist as a Jewish state, with defensible borders, in full security and without threats and terror.

3) Attack of Hamas if they fail to disarm before elections. Again, Sharon last week:

The most important test the Palestinian leadership will face is in fulfilling their commitment to put an end to terror and its infrastructures, eliminate the anarchic regime of armed gangs, and cease the incitement and indoctrination of hatred toward Israel and the Jews...I call on the Palestinian leadership to show determination and leadership and to eliminate terror, violence and the culture of hatred from our relations. I am certain that it is in our power to present our peoples with a new and promising horizon, a horizon of hope.

And this week:

"We will never agree that this terrorist organization, this armed terrorist organization, will participate in the elections," he told reporters on September 18.

It's possible, as well, that Israel just wants a release from some of the power the United States holds over them. No longer can the United States tell Israel what it can and cannot do, and silently hold that veto power over them; Israel will now be able to do what it feels is best for its own country, with less (though not zero) pressure from the US to affect its decisions.

No matter the reason, Israel deserves a turn. It has proven itself to be the most moral and decent country - and the only democratic country besides Iraq - in the Middle East, if not the world. Its restraint in the face of terror has been unprecedented, and it has never been on the Security Council since its creation - though all its neighbors have, many times.

So, although I have realized this cannot happen for many years, I still must state that this is a position Israel deserves and needs now - regardless of, and possibly because of, the situations which might arise in the near future.

Israel should be a member of the UN Security Council. Period.

Technorati tags: Israel, UN, Security, Council, Sharon.