As the UN budget fight whimpered past 5 am on Christmas Eve, the heralded US drive for reform and transparency came down to a desire to cut $7 million rather than $5 million from the budget of the UN Mission in the Ivory Coast, UNOCI ...
Some diplomats lay sleeping on couches on the first and second floors of the North Lawn building; the UN staff required to formalize the votes on Christmas eve waited over cold pizza and hot water without tea bags.
Recorded votes were predicted on the Responsibility to Protect, and the Myanmar item left over from the Third Committee due to Program Budget Implications. "Our colleagues left us the Law of the Sea too," a representative said, predicting a General Assembly vote by 8 am. Others said noon. We'll see.
Major SPMs are in Libya, Iraq and Afghanistan. The P-5 just want us to pay for them.
ReplyDeleteThe P5 might be together on SPMs, but they are far apart in other ways.
P-5: the parmanent five members of the Security Council
SPMs: Special Political Missions