Leaders of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations have called on the United States to “unequivocally affirm” that it would veto any one-sided condemnatory United Nations Security Council resolution on the Palestinian-Israeli issue if it is presented Thursday to the Council for a vote.

A draft UN Security Council resolution demanding a halt to Israeli building in the West Bank is expected to be voted on in a meeting in New York.

The draft declares that existing settlements "have no legal validity" and are "a flagrant violation" of international law. It also stresses that "the cessation of all Israeli settlement activities is essential for salvaging the two-state solution" which would see Israelis and Palestinians living side-by-side in peace.

Israel's Ambassador at the United Nations Danny Danon said the resolution "will do nothing to promote a diplomatic process and will only reward the Palestinian policy of incitement and terror."

"We expect our greatest ally not to allow this one-sided and anti-Israel resolution to be adopted by the council," he said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has rejected those terms saying negotiations should take place without conditions, has called on the US to veto the resolution.

In a statement, Stephen M. Greenberg, Chairman, and Malcolm Hoenlein, Executive Vice Chairman and CEO, of the Conference of Presidents said, “The resolutions, one being promoted by the Palestinians, and another presented by New Zealand, represent the latest misguided effort to enlist the Security Council to provide an escape route for the Palestinians to evade their obligations to negotiate directly with Israel to reach a final agreement ending the conflict. We have seen this kind of evasive maneuver by the Palestinians before.

‘’As the Obama administration did in very similar circumstances in 2011, we urge the President to clearly state the opposition of the U.S. to the current draft resolutions and to unequivocally affirm it will again exercise its veto in the Council, if they are not withdrawn.’’

The two US Jewish leaders added : ‘’Today, on the eve of a new U.S. administration, is not the time to alter the course of a sound and consistent U.S. policy at the U.N. Security Council. It is a time to reiterate and emphasize the approach that has preserved the possibility for the parties themselves to directly tackle the issues that will lead to a comprehensive agreement ending the conflict.’’

‘’We would add that allowing the proposed resolutions to be adopted will also unduly restrict the incoming administration’s ability to pursue policies to advance peace and encourage the parties to deal directly with each other.”