Prosor named Israel's UN ambassador

Israel's Ambassador to Britain Ron Prosor has been named as the Jewish state's next United Nations envoy, sources in the Prime Minister's Office confirmed Sunday following an agreement between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman.

Prosor will be replaced in London by National Security Advisor Uzi Arad, in a move likely aimed at restoring calm in the Prime Minister's Office.

Arad's name as been mentioned often as the person responsible for many disputes and tensions in the PM's Office.

Environmental Protection Minister Gilad Erdan decided last week to turn down Netanyahu's offer to serve as Israel's ambassador to the UN, after long deliberations. His main fear was that spending several years in New York would hurt his political aspirations.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4027604,00.html

The Guardian's Assault on Peace in the Middle East
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ron-prosor/the-guardians-assault-on-_b_817701.html

Prosor's successor Arad will be more of a diplomat and less preoccupied with complaining about the Brits.

Arad does seem to have a more substantial record.

All he seemed to do was complain, even writing whiny articles in The Guardian's Comment is Free, and then turning round and complaining about The Guardian. If Israel wants to participate in a constructive way at the UN, they should send someone up to the task, not an Israeli version of John Bolton....

getting rid of someone who is causing embarrassment at home

I mean, look at who the Foreign Minister of Israel is. Israel has a bad track record when it comes to diplomats who are a total embarressment. A few years back, they sent a new Ambassador to Australia who made some incredibly racist comments where he said: "Israel and Australia are like sisters in Asia. We are in Asia without the characteristics of Asians. We don't have yellow skin and slanted eyes. Asia is basically the yellow race. Australia and Israel are not - we are basically the white race."

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3322042,00.html

At the time he was quickly recalled back to Israel, but I suspect that he wouldn't be such an embarressment to the current extreme RW Israeli govt the way he was to Olmert's govt back then...

The new ambassador will soon discover that the absence of negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians has created an atmosphere of support for Palestinian issues, an atmosphere in the manner of which has not been felt in the UN for years.

The political stagnation, for which Israel is responsible, produced a wave of initiatives including the draft against Israeli settlements and the Russian initiative to dispatch a Security Council delegation to the Middle East to closely examine the reasons for the ongoing crisis between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

<snip>

High up on Prosor's list of priorities will be alerting the UN about the strengthening of Hezbollah in Lebanon as well as the ramification of UN resolution 1701, which calls on the Lebanese Army to deploy throughout the country, including in the Hezbollah stronghold of southern Lebanon, and prevent Hezbollah from acquiring more weapons. Another priority will of course be strengthening opposition to Iran's nuclear program.

Prosor is well known for his work in London against schemes to delegitimize Israel. In the center of the United Nations in New York, he will need all the experience that he acquired in this field

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/israel-faces-emboldened-palestinian-delegation-in-the-un-1.343598

and then returned to his post (although his tenure was shortened). He later got in trouble again for allowing a security officer to remain in Australia as an officer of the embassy after he was no longer an employee.

His remarks at the time were not exactly diplomatic:-

"In my opinion, anyone who wants to study towards a degree as an independent person and has no other commitments should not be prevented from doing so. I don't see the problem in his desire to stay and study, and I am the last person who would prevent him from doing so, even if it's in a place called Australia," he said.

They must have a real shortage of diplomats in Israel to send ones like that out into the world to represent Israel...

The US chose him as the ambassador to the UN - certainly no "shortage of diplomats" to choose from.

Also, me and Shaay were discussing the racist Israeli ambassador that was recalled from and later sent back to Australia. I'm pretty sure he was never sent to the UN, so yr comment doesn't make any sense at all...

so the story goes. As a chef, apparently.

He was sent back for a few months until his successor arrived.

He was the US UN ambassador for a time.

Take a look at some of his statements and views.

He was a guest speaker at CPAC where he warned against Egyptian Democracy

Right-wing presidents/prime ministers generally appoint right-wingers to such posts.

Let's see how long Prosor lasts in this position.

he served from 11/07 to the present, Bolton lasted 16 months from 8/05 to 12/06 when even a lame duck Republican majority Senate could not confirm him

We shall see how long he lasts.

is Kadima a right wing party your claim was that right wingers appoint right wingers but Olmert from the reputedly Centrist Kadima made him an ambassador in the first place

Here in the US, for example, Bill Clinton appointed a Republican as ambassador to the UK during his tenure as president.

who Bill Clinton appointed as an ambassador only further proves your original statement wrong

People of various political stripes are often appointed to ambassadorships of politically friendly countries

The ambassador to the UN position is an entirely different animal.

being the UN ambassador and his work during his time in the UK IMO was why he was choosen for that position

Being British, I was aware of Prosor mainly in his role as ambassador to the UK, in which post he has shown himself pretty undiplomatic for a diplomat. (Not that there aren't also undiplomatic British diplomats!)

for the both positions because he was 'undiplomatic'

Glad he finally went.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/theguardian/2011/feb/12/corrections-clarifications?INTCMP=SRCH



Prosor nailed it WRT the Guardian coverage of the Palestine Papers.

All they admitted to was saying that the quote was "cut in a way that may have given a misleading impression" - not quite an admission of lying.

Looking at the quote, however, and the way it was cut, I would say "misleading impression" is an understatement.

Lots of people have lots to complain about.

I'm shocked they printed a retraction.

Of course there are at least 5-6 more they should print WRT the way they misrepresented the Palestine Papers.

It looks like there's been a major bustup betweent the PM and the FM.