Opportunities for the Incoming President

On November 13th there was an excellent session at the UN Church Center sponsored by the United Nations Association of the USA. The featured speakers were Barbara Crosette, UN Correspondent for "The Nation", and Stephen Schlesinger, Author and Fellow, The Century Foundation.

Dr. Schlesinger spoke first. He began by stating that with the new administration in Washington, it is hoped that the US will pay its back dues, amounting now to 1.2 billion dollars. This outstanding bill has a direct bearing on the capability of the UN peace building and peace keeping forces to be present in places of conflict.

Other urgent areas of neglect on the part of the US are support for a nuclear weapons moratorium, efforts to restructure the International Atomic Energy Agency, creating a treaty to ban the weaponization of space, and creating an agency to act as distributor of fissile material. In addition, it is hoped that during the Obama Administration the US will join the Human Rights Council and the International Criminal Court. The US should immediately ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and support actively the successor document to the UNFCCC Kyoto Protocol.

Dr. Crossette pointed out that there is an urgent need to appoint a person of high caliber as US Ambassador or Envoy to the UN. Some names being raised are Carolyn Kennedy, Sussan Rice and Bill Richardson. Dr. Crossette mentioned that it would be a very good idea to elevate this position to Cabinet level. This would require an excellent and collaborative UN staff as opposed to the present US staff at the UN which tends to be belligerent and uncooperative. She said it will take huge political will to overcome the implanted idea that to be engaged with the UN is to be weak regarding US security.

There was also a call for the reorganization of the Security Council, increasing its membership, and for the reorganization of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. All of these require the support and creative intelligence of the US.

Lastly, it is hoped that Mr. Obama will bring the youth of the US into the UN by supporting internships and other UN youth oriented activities. Model UNs could be set up by youth around the coutry.