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https://news.un.org/en/story/2023/12/1144717

The resolution has passed by a large majority, securing the needed two-thirds of members. Widespread applause rings out around the General Assembly Hall.

Those voting against were the US, Israel, Austria, Czechia, Guatemala, Liberia, Micronesia, Nauru, Papua New Guinea and Paraguay.

What does Paraguay have to gain by voting against a ceasefire in the Israel-Gaza war? I found it weird that Paraguay voted against a ceasefire since the country is in Latin America and even staunch American allies like Australia and Canada voted in favor of it. What does it have to gain from all of this?

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I suspect that simply by looking at a list of conservative governments in the Americas, we already would have a fairly complete explanation.

  1. Conservative, because right-wing parties are naturally more aligned with Likud and with Israel in general, and often more militarily hawkish, whereas the centrist and left-wing consensus in most countries is strongly against the continuation of the war.
  2. And in the Americas, because (a) due to geographical factors, they have a lot to gain by going along with the USA position in important votes, and less to lose from opposing, say, the position of Russia and China, and (b) they do not have as much anti-Semitism to reckon with as with the far right in some other countries, particularly in Europe, which might provide a bit of an obstacle toward looking too pro-Israel.

Many of the other countries, such as Bolivia, Venezuela, Brazil, Mexico, and Canada, have leaders associated with left-wing parties, whether democratic or authoritarian. There are a bunch of more centrist leaders, too, as in Belize, Uruguay, or El Salvador.

Looking at the political landscape of the American continent, Guatemala and Paraguay currently are among the countries with the most right-wing leadership: although Javier Milei is probably the most right-wing leader in the Americas at the moment, he became president of Argentina right around the time of the UN vote, so there was probably not time to change the delegation.

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    a lot of it also has to do with the current president of paraguay's own opinions.
    – whoisit
    Commented Dec 19, 2023 at 20:39
  • PNG has just locked in a Jerusalem embassy funded by Israel. It's looking for Israeli cultural investment. It shares a border with an expansionist Islamic empire, and it's international political stance is idiosyncratic and personality driven.
    – david
    Commented Dec 20, 2023 at 8:15
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    @david - I am talking about Paraguay here (and Guatemala, because the reasons are likely similar) not Papua New Guinea.
    – Obie 2.0
    Commented Dec 20, 2023 at 9:07

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