Theresa May criticises Obama administration's Israeli stance

The US president-elect has said the United Nations is failing to live up to its potential, heaping further criticism on the body in the wake of a UN vote on the legality of Israeli settlements.

Donald Trump's comments follow Secretary of State John Kerry's speech defending the US decision to abstain from that vote.

"There is such tremendous potential, but [the UN] is not living up [to it]. When do you see the United Nations solving problems? They don't. They cause problems," Mr Trump said.

Trump offered little comment on Kerry's speech, telling reporters that it "spoke for itself", but he has assured Israel that it merely needs to "hang on" until his administration takes over from that of Barack Obama.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has said he is ready to resume peace talks with Israel - if the country halts settlement construction.

On Wednesday, Abbas said he would be prepared to resume talks "within a specific time frame and on the basis of international law."

His comments came after a speech by US Secretary of State John Kerry, outlining America's rationale behind a decision not to veto a UN resolution demanding further Israeli settlement building be halted.

The speech was earlier described by Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu as a "great disappointment".

John Kerry's speech on settlement in Israel was "skewed" and "obsessive," the Middle Eastern country's Prime Minister claims.

Benjamin Netanyahu slammed the speech, made on Wednesday in Washington, as "biased" against Israel.

The Israeli PM said Secretary of State Kerry's speech - which justified US opposition to further settlement building in the region - ignored the root of the conflict.

Netanyahu cited the root as being Palestinian opposition to a Jewish state within any borders.

Kerry's speech indicated the US belief that Israeli actions were threatening peace in the Middle East.

"Like the Security Council resolution, that Secretary Kerry advanced in the U.N., his speech tonight was skewed against Israel," a statement said.

"The Israeli leader said Kerry "obsessively dealt with settlements".

The US has rejected criticism of its decision not to veto a UN resolution demanding the stop of Israeli settlement building.

Secretary of State John Kerry said that if the US had vetoed the resolution then it would have given tacit approval to Israel to continue so-called illegal settling.

"If we had vetoed this resolution, just the other day, the United States would have been giving licence to further unfettered settlement construction that we fundamentally oppose," Kerry said.

"So we reject the criticism that this vote abandons Israel."

He added: "On the contrary, it is not this resolution that is isolating Israel. It is the permanent policy of settlement construction that risks making peace impossible."

Kerry said that "virtually every country" except for Israel opposes further settlement.

"virtually every country" except for Israel opposes settlement.

Hopes for peace in Israel are "slipping away", according to John Kerry.

The US Secretary of State said the idea of a one-state solution in the region was not viable, and affirmed the US's commitment to a two-state answer.

"We cannot, in good conscience, do nothing, and say nothing, when we see the hope of peace slipping away," Kerry said.

He added: "The truth is that trends on the ground - violence, terrorism, incitement, settlement expansion and the seemingly endless occupation - are destroying hopes for peace on both sides and increasingly cementing an irreversible one-state reality that most people do not actually want."

No US government has done more to protect Israel's security and ensure its future than Barack Obama's, according to John Kerry.

The US Secretary of State said its vote not to veto a UN resolution calling for an end to Israeli settlement building was in line with securing the Middle Eastern nation's future.

"We cannot properly defend and protect Israel if we allow a viable two-state solution to be destroyed before our own eyes," Kerry said.

He added that the US vote was about "preserving the two-state solution", maintaining that the country had shown "unwavering" commitment to Israel.

"Israel's future is a Jewish and democratic state, living side-by-side in peace and security with its neighbours," Kerry said.

He added: "No American administration has done more for Israel's security than Barack Obama's."

The US did not veto a UN resolution demanding an end to Israeli settlement building because it was in accordance with American "values".

Secretary of State John Kerry said the US had done "more than any other country" to support Israel, but that it could not "stand idly" by as the region becomes more unstable.

"If we were to stand idly by, and know that in doing so we were allowing a dangerous dynamic to take hold - which promises greater conflict and instability - to a region in which we have vital interests, we would be derelict in our own responsibilities," Kerry said.

He added: "Friends need to tell each other the hard truths."

"The US did in fact vote in accordance with our values - just as previous administrations have done at the Security Council before us," he said.

A peaceful future between Israelis and Palestinians is now in "jeopardy," according to US Secretary of State John Kerry.

Explaining why America did not veto a UN resolution demanding an end to Israeli settlement building, Kerry said the US could not have done it "in good conscience".

Kerry said the resolution made clear both Israel and the Palestinians needed to act now to "preserve the possibility of peace".

He added there is "still a way forward if responsible parties are willing to act".

US Secretary of State John Kerry has said a two-state solution is the "only way" to achieve lasting peace between Israel and Palestinians.

Delivering a farewell speech in Washington, Kerry maintained that President Obama had been "deeply committed" to Israel and its security.

Kerry added that commitment had "guided" Obama's pursuit of peace in the Middle East.

"The two-state solution is the only way to achieve a just and lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians," Kerry said.

"It is the only way to ensure Israel's future as a Jewish and democratic state - living in peace and security with its neighbours."