US Will Veto Palestinian Statehood Bid at UN

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration says it will veto any bid by the Palestinians to seek statehood recognition at the U.N. Security Council.

The administration had long said it opposed such a unilateral move by the Palestinians. The United States has been working to prevent a Palestinian resolution from coming before the council.

Until now, Washington had not explicitly said it would use its veto to prevent passage. On Thursday, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said that if the issue comes to a vote in the Security Council, the U.S. will veto it.

Israel opposes the statehood push as well.

Nuland says the U.S. view is that the Palestinian effort is misguided and that statehood should come only as a result of negotiations with Israel.