Ankara denies vote against Palestinians

The Turkish capital has rejected media reports suggesting that it voted against Palestine's bid to become an observer member of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). A resolution on the issue was voted on during a meeting of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly which was held last week in Monaco, a senior diplomat told Anatolia news agency late on Sunday. He denied, however, that Turkey had voted against a resolution for Palestine to become an observer member of the 56-member OSCE. "It is true that the resolution was voted on. However, there is no such situation like the Turkish delegation's using a countervote. Turkey's and Turkish parliamentarians' manner is positive," the diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Anatolia. Leading Israeli daily Haaretz reported over the weekend that Turkey was among 28 members that rejected the resolution on Palestine's bid. In Bethlehem, an adviser to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas denied the Haaretz report entirely July 8. "Joining the organization is not one of the Palestinian Authority's priorities," Majdi al-Khalidi was quoted as saying by Ma'an news agency. Denying that Palestine had made any such request, Al-Khalidi told the agency that Palestine was in consultation with Arab states on its next steps for membership of international bodies, in the event that talks with Israel failed to be revived.