US says UN not venue to negotiate Palestinian statehood

The United States on Wednesday opposed a Palestinian push for full membership at the United Nations, with Washington saying it backed statehood but after negotiations with Israel. "We support the establishment of an independent Palestinian state," U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters. "That is something that should be done through direct negotiations through the parties, something we are pursuing at this time, and not at the United Nations," he said, without explicitly saying that the United States would …