VIDEO – The Palestinian Authority has asked Russia and China to help rescue it from financial collapse as it continues to struggle to service its billion-dollar deficit and to pay government employee salaries.
Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad Maliki blasted Arab countries for not fulfilling financial aid pledges toward the Palestinian Authority.
The organization’s finances have become even more precarious in recent weeks after Israel and the United States altered economic arrangements in response to the PA’s unilateral move to seek upgraded status at the United Nations General Assembly.
The Arab League last March announced creation of a so-called "financial safety net" of $100 million a month to protect the Palestinian Authority from economic collapse. However, Arab states failed to fulfill funding pledges, which Palestinian leaders said demonstrated that the Arab world was "moving away from the Palestinian issue."
In early 2012, Israel appealed to the International Monetary Fund requesting a bridging loan of $1 billion on behalf of the Palestinian Authority, but this request was turned down by the Washington-based body as it was reported that the IMF did not want to set a precedent by giving money to non-state entities.