Barbados prime minister Mia Mottley's recent speech at the United Nations General Assembly underscores the precarious position of the Caribbean nations in the shifting tide of global co-operation made more dramatic by the Palestinian situation and the Gaza humanitarian crisis.

In a UN vote of 194 nations, there were 146 acceptances of Palestine as a member to the exclusion of the United States vote and others. This vote naturally included the vote of Barbados and other Caribbean nations.

Precarious because while these Caribbean nations would be included in what is termed the Global South, they are indeed Western nations and dependent on the US in almost every imaginable way. It is difficult or impossible to remain neutral with such glaring atrocities and familiar racist actions being perpetrated on Palestinian people by Israel.

The times are changing. When we consider 20 years ago, it would have been unthinkable for a Caribbean leader to speak out against the actions of the Western alliance, particularly the US. This truly highlights the moral dilemma facing the world as it contemplates the reality that peace in the Middle East is contingent on a two-state solution based on Palestinian self-determination.

The paradox is that Kamala Harris, who is one of the presidential contenders, has said she supports the two-state solution as a means of alleviating the suffering and indignity faced by the Palestinians. Yet her administration voted against accepting Palestine as a member of the UN. At the same time, it is known that Israel's leader, Binyamin Netanyahu, has vowed there will never be a Palestinian state.

International law does not require that Israel needs to support a Palestinian state, but its peace and security should rather depend on it as opposed to colonisation, military dominance and ethno-supremacist ideology.

America went through this ideological phase in the early 20th century and has made progress over its Jim Crow laws and racist attitudes that dominated society. One would think the same experience should guide the US administration to realise that apartheid is unsustainable. It has been made abundantly clear that Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthi, and all of the resistance will end when permanent peace has been agreed in Palestine. Fifty-seven Arab-Muslim states have given their commitment to recognising the defence of Israel if they support the two-state solution.

America needs to reset its foreign policy. Bombing your way to success, or intimidation through shock and awe, does not work in a world that has become technologically sophisticated. The notion of creating a superior military force in the Middle East to which all others are subordinate — who, if they show signs of resistance, would be bombed — is coming to an end. Diplomacy is the new password to peace and progress for all nations.