22 Av 5771 August 22, 2011
Ambassador Vassillis Kaskarelis
Greek Embassy
2217 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20008
Dear Ambassador Kaskarelis,
As we anticipate next month's annual United Nations General Assembly session, we remain at the cusp of a fateful move by the Palestinian Authority to extract through coercion and subterfuge international recognition which is not due, for no permanent settlement of outstanding issues has been yet arrived by the P.A. and Israel. Membership in the United Nations requires approval of the Security Council and a two-thirds majority of the General Assembly. Forthrightly, the United States --- see Senate Resolution 185 calling on our President to veto the motion --- has signaled its opposition, and has strenuously lobbied its Western Allies to resist the siren song of calculated mischief. My wife, Anna, and I appeal that our native land, Greece, join in opposing granting elevated diplomatic recognition for the Palestinian Authority, while direct negotiations between it and Israel have not concluded.
Of course, the prospect that Greece will not follow American leadership in this vital matter is unthinkable. But, then, so it was voting against United Nations General Assembly Resolution 181 (II) Future Government of Palestine, on November 29, 1947, which directly led, months later, to the creation of the modern State of Israel. Greece was one of 13 nations, the only European, to be in the negative column (Afghanistan, Cuba, Egypt, Greece, India, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, Yemen). Thirty-three countries supported the motion, while ten abstained.
Years later, we have joined with a growing chorus to appeal to the better impulses in today's Greek government and society --- as we witness the improvement in Greco-Israeli relations in recent months --- and request that historic correction be made to the record: let Greece recall its 1947 vote, enlisting it among the more progressive nations, who countenance neither anti-Semitism not anti-Zionism! The impact of such a step would be positively electrifying, assuring the world community that Greece is in the forefront of lasting political change, to go along with present overdue dramatic, even radical, economic and social alterations.
Sincerely, and with fraternal affection, Asher
Prof. Asher J. Matathias
312 Longacre Avenue, Woodmere, NY 11598-2530
516-374-2958 Mobile: 36-5799 AsherJmat@Aol.com
c: Ambassador Anastassis Mitsialis, Permanent Representative of Greece to the UN, 866 Second Avenue, 13FL, New York, NY 10017
Ambassador Aglaia Baltas, Consul-General, Greek Consulate, 69 East 79 Street, New York, NY 10021
*Thank you for this wonderful concept that GREECE should use at the United Nations in order to restore the true concepts of this proud country and make this historic correction to the original 1947 vote on ISRAEL. SINCERELY, G.F., NY
**It's nice to know we're on the same page, Asher. You would have been a welcome member to my group, Americans for a Safe Israel, of which I was president for two terms, many years ago. Count me in for a letter to the Embassy. Jack S., Los Angeles, CA
*I gave the Israel Consul-General your contact information.
John Cats(imatidis), New York, NY
*Dear Asher, I have written 3 letters, to be mailed tomorrow, and I have emailed many.
Thea A., Brooklyn, NY
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