Are U.S. Interests Being Advanced at the U.N.?

Brett Schaefer / September 21, 2010

In anticipation of President Obama’s second address to the United Nations this week, the White House has published a lengthy press release titled “Advancing U.S. Interests at the United Nations” that lists the achievements of the administration at the United Nations. The motivation behind the press release is that those achievements are not being given their due in the eyes of the White House. This is, however, entirely fitting because the achievements are themselves not really notable. In brief, the administration’s list of claimed U.N. accomplishments includes:

• U.N. Security Council sanctions on Iran and North Korea and the Final Document of the Non-Proliferation Treaty that “advances a realistic path towards achievement … of a world without nuclear weapons.”

• Supporting U.S. efforts in Afghanistan and Iraq.

• Strengthening U.N. peacekeeping and bolstering conflict prevention efforts in Haiti, Sudan, Congo, Liberia, Somalia, Eritrea, and Sri Lanka. (more…)