The UN Security Council is due to vote later today on a resolution put forward by Arab nations demanding that Israel not harm or deport Palestinian President Yasser Arafat.
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Palestinian President Yasser Arafat
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The resolution, drafted by Palestinian UN envoy Mr Nasser al-Kidwa, "demands that Israel, the occupying power, desist from any act of deportation and to cease any threat to the safety of the elected president of the Palestinian Authority."
Washington, Israel's closest ally, is "not prepared to support the resolution in its present form" because it does not explicitly condemn terrorism by Palestinian militant groups and is "very lopsided" against Israel, said US Ambassador John Negroponte.
There was "a perfectly good peace plan already on the table" and senior officials of the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations would meet later this month in New York to explore next steps on the Middle East, Mr Negroponte told reporters.
But in Paris this morning, France, which also has veto poweron the Security Council and opposed the US invasion of Iraq,signaled it would support the resolution on Arafat. A French foreign ministry spokesman said: "Thedraft resolution does not pose a problem for us. It suits us."
The Council decided late last night to schedule a vote on the resolution at the request of Syria, which was acting on behalf of Arab and non-aligned nations. The vote was expected in midafternoon, diplomats said.
The decision came after nearly eight hours of harsh debate in the 15-nation Security Council, in which more than 40 governments condemned a decision by Israel's security cabinet to get rid of Mr Arafat through unspecified means.
Syria unveiled last-minute changes in the draft text late on Monday in an attempt to broaden support. But diplomats said the changes were unlikely to head off a US veto. Arab envoys said they did not intend to compromise further.
The chief UN envoy to the Middle East, Mr Terje Roed-Larsen, accused both Israelis and Palestinians of failing to "seriously and actively" address each other's concerns. He stressed that Mr Arafat is the democratically elected leader who "embodies Palestinian identity and national aspirations".
But Israeli Ambassador Mr Dan Gillerman dismissed Mr Arafat as a liar and a "professional terrorist" and predicted his removal would swiftly lead to an end to the conflict.
Mr Arafat "is at the helm of those who have been supporting mega-terror attacks in the style of the bombing of the twin towers, to bring the region to the brink of catastrophe," Mr Gillerman said, prompting Palestinian envoy Mr al-Kidwa to walk out of the chamber.
"Had Israel wanted to kill Yasser Arafat, it could have done so 3,000 times," Mr Gillerman added.