You have commented 339 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
East/Subsaharan Africa
UN Must Take Action on Threats to Security, Says British Official
2003-06-20
For the UN to remain central to global politics, peace and security, it must take "effective action" to deal with threats to peace and security, the British Foreign Office minister for global issues, Bill Rammell, said on Thursday. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office reported that Rammel was speaking after a meeting in London with the UN Under-Secretary for Peacekeeping Operations, Jean-Marie Guehenno.
First step is to dump all the men with decision-making power who have girl's names...
Rammell said it was Britain's desire to see a resolution to the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and that Britain was committed to helping achieve this objective. "We had a useful discussion about the current situation in the DRC, in particular about the multinational force deploying to Bunia," the Foreign Office quoted Rammell as saying.
"Useful discussions" are the ones where one side or the other says, "Yeah, you're right." They're not necessarily connected with any actions, only with the assignment of blame.
He said the international community's response to the crisis in the DRC had shown what could be done when "we have the courage to do so".
Ummm... Have they actually done anything? Other than have a couple of their guys killed and eaten?
On 30 May, the UN Security Council authorised the deployment of a 1,500-strong French-led multinational force in Bunia, where months of inter-militia fighting has led to hundreds of deaths and thousands of people displaced from their homes. About half of the multinational force is already in the eastern town. It is mandated to secure the town and to protect UN staff, humanitarian workers and displaced civilians.
It's not mandated to shoot anybody, though.
Guehenno was in London to attend a seminar on Thursday, hosted by the British Foreign Office, on modernising the UN. He gave a speech on the current and future Challenges of UN peacekeeping. The Foreign Office reported that Rammell told participants that the UN had to modernise its institutions and practices in order to face up to present day challenges. "I hope that during the course of today's seminar we can examine three key questions," he said. "First, how well is the UN meeting current concerns?
Not at all...
Second, what is the UN already doing to modernise its operations?
They have blue helmets instead of bearskin hats. And they wave guns instead of pikes...
And third, what should the UN do to meet new challenges?"
Shoot large numbers of Bad Guys? Nah. That'd never work... How about if they talk to them?
He said that without internal reform, the UN would be unable to meet the objectives that the international community set it in the Millennium Declaration. "Efficiencies are required to meet new priorities and new challenges," he said. "Ultimately, if we are seriously to address the global challenges we face, it is imperative that we work together: the United Nations, member states and civil society in partnership."
I'd say if you're ever going to accomplish something, you'll have to shoot a lot of Bad Guys. But, hey! What the hell do I know?
Posted by:Fred Pruitt

#2  
He said that without internal reform, the UN would be unable to meet the objectives that the international community set it in the Millennium Declaration. "Efficiencies are required to meet new priorities and new challenges," he said.

Let's see: Internal reform and "efficiencies".
Two things that huge Socialist bureaucracies really, really suck at.
There is hope after all.
I didn't think there was an end to the UN in sight!
******************
Burn down the UN.
Plow under the ashes.
Sow the soil with salt.
Place a plaque at the location listing the victims of this horrendous, costly fraud and include an apology for all of those who have suffered because of this abomination.
_____________________________
Dar al Islam is dead: Reason burned it down.
Posted by: Celissa   2003-06-21 01:47:49  

#1  You also might want to think about excluding the French from anything resembling a military operation. Except if the Legion goes in on it's own hook.
Posted by: tu3031   2003-06-20 22:27:23  

00:00