World is bigger than five, much bigger than one, says Erdoğan after UN vote on Jerusalem

Turkish President and AK Party Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdoğan delivered a speech at the Extended Meeting with Provincial Heads of the Justice and Development Party on Friday where he addressed the UN’s resolution on Jerusalem.

Erdoğan, hailing the United Nations General Assembly vote held late on Thursday rejecting a U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital, said Turkey clearly showed its stance on Jerusalem by mobilizing the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

He said that the UN Security Council was not able to adopt a decision due to the U.S.’s veto power, and added: “We meant this situation when we were saying that the world is bigger than five. It is much much bigger than one,” referring to the five permanent Security Council members China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

He said the White House threatened each of the UN member countries to vote against the resolution.

“Since when have the democratic wills of states been up for sale? An approach that allows democratic wills to be sold is a not a system, not a regime. If anyone adopts this approach, they are doomed to learn a lesson.”

President Trump on Wednesday threatened to cut aid to countries who vote against the U.S. at the UN General Assembly on the status of Jerusalem.

“For all these nations, they take our money and then vote against us. They take hundreds of millions of dollars, even billions of dollars and then they vote against us,” Trump said. “We’re watching those votes. Let them vote against us. We’ll save a lot,” he stated.

On Monday the U.S. used its veto power to cancel out a Security Council resolution to condemn the U.S. president’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of the holy city, despite 14 of the 15-member council voting in favor.

The resolution was then adopted at a rare emergency special session on Thursday at the UN General Assembly, where the U.S. does not have veto powers

Erdoğan said those who abstained from a vote most probably support 128 UN members that voted in favor of the resolution.

A total of 128 members voted in favor of the resolution, nine countries voted against and 35 others abstained.

Jerusalem is sacred to both Muslims and Jews, as it includes sites known to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif (The Noble Sanctuary), al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the rock, as well as an ancient Jewish temple.

The Turkish President also addressed the situation of Mohamed al-Tawil, a 29-year-old Palestinian with Down syndrome, who was brought to Ankara for medical treatment in Turkey and was received by high-level Turkish authorities on Thursday. He said al-Tawil, who is a guest of Turkey, wants Turkish citizenship for himself and his family.

Al-Tawil was detained by the Israeli forces during protests against U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and then released due to the huge reaction his arrest sparked.