14 March 2002
UN Plays Key Role in War on Terrorism, U.S. Official Says
(State's William Wood testifies on U.S. funding for UN) (3690)
One of the ways the United States can meet its overriding foreign
policy objectives of winning the war on terrorism and protecting
American citizens, at home and abroad, is through active participation
in and support for the United Nations and other international
organizations, a key State Department official says.
William Wood, principal deputy assistant secretary of state for
international organization affairs, told a congressional subcommittee
March 14 that after the September 11 terrorist attacks on New York and
Washington, the United Nations "began a process to change the
international community's orientation toward terrorism, so that it is
no longer a tragic but accepted part of international life, but
something we agree to act together to do something about."
He pointed to a series of UN resolutions adopted after September 11
that have provided "the framework for unprecedented international
consultation and coordination against terrorism."
Wood was testifying before a House of Representatives Judiciary
Subcommittee in support of the Bush administration's FY 2003 request
for funds to pay the U.S. annual assessed contributions to
international organizations and for UN assessed peacekeeping
activities.
He said the administration is requesting $891,378,000, which "would
enable us to pay in full our annual assessed contributions to all 43
international organizations funded through this appropriation." In
addition the request includes $726 million to fund "our projected
assessments to 11 UN peacekeeping missions and a portion of the costs
of two war crimes tribunals."
"[O]ur investment in the United Nations and other international
organizations, he told the subcommittee members, "provides us with an
effective mechanism to help maintain international peace and security,
coordinate international action, act collectively in response to
common problems, and advance our common human values."
Following is the text of Wood's remarks, as prepared for delivery:
(begin text)
Statement for the Record
Testimony by William B. Wood
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State
Bureau of International Organization Affairs
Before the Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State and the Judiciary
Committee on Appropriations
U.S. House of Representatives
March 14, 2002
Mr. Chairman, members of the committee, it is an honor for me to
appear before you today, together with Ambassador Negroponte, our
distinguished U.S. Representative to the United Nations in New York.
We are here together to testify in support of the President's FY 2003
request for funds to pay our annual assessed contributions to
international organizations and for UN assessed peacekeeping
activities. As events since September 11 continue to demonstrate,
these organizations and activities deserve our support more than ever.
When Assistant Secretary Welch and Ambassador Cunningham appeared
before this same committee last year, the focus of their remarks was
largely on management issues: on reforming UN peacekeeping, on
reducing our arrears, and on our efforts generally to move a complex
UN system in the direction of greater efficiency and
cost-effectiveness.
More than a year later, and more than six months since the terrorist
attacks against us of last September, our national interest in lean,
effective UN operations, including peacekeeping operations, is
unchanged. We can report progress toward a number of these management
goals, but our foreign policy attention has clearly shifted. As
Secretary Powell put it last week before this same committee, our two
overriding foreign policy objectives are now to win the war on terror
and to protect American citizens, both at home and abroad. One of the
ways we can do both is through our continued active participation in
and support for the United Nations and other international
organizations.
On September 12, the United Nations began a process to change the
international community's orientation toward terrorism, so that it is
no longer a tragic but accepted part of international life, but
something we agree to act together to do something about. General
Assembly Resolution 56/1, the first of the new session, adopted on
September 12, specified that not just the perpetrators of terrorism,
but also its supporters must be held accountable. That same day, the
Security Council adopted Resolution 1368, also calling for
accountability for perpetrators and supporters and, for the first time
ever, classifying every act of international terrorism as a threat to
international peace and security.
Sixteen days later, the Security Council adopted Resolution 1373. As
President Bush said in his address to the UN General Assembly, by
adopting Security Council Resolution 1373, the United Nations defined
for all nations the most basic obligations in the new conflict against
terrorism.
UNSCR 1373 obligates all UN member states to use their domestic laws
and courts to keep terrorists from sheltering resources or finding
safe haven anywhere in the world and to cooperate in investigating,
prosecuting, and preventing terrorism wherever it may spring up. The
UN Security Council is monitoring compliance with the requirements of
this resolution, with impressive results: to date 142 countries have
issued orders freezing the assets of suspected terrorists and
terrorist organizations; accounts totaling almost $105 million have
been blocked - $34 million in the U.S. and over twice that amount in
other countries. Overall, Resolution 1373 has been the framework for
unprecedented international consultation and coordination against
terrorism, including the provision of technical assistance to
governments that want to do the right thing, but may not have the
specialized expertise necessary.
The UN effort to combat terrorism is not confined to New York,
however. Last month the International Civil Aviation Organization
hosted in Montreal a ministerial-level meeting to develop new
international procedures, including hardening of cockpit doors and
stricter flight crew security techniques, to safeguard civilian
aviation from terrorist threats. The International Maritime
Organization, in consultation with the U.S. Coast Guard, is developing
initiatives for tighter merchant ship security, stiffer licensing
requirements for port security officers, enhanced procedures for
port-of-origin container inspections, and accelerating an "automatic
identification system" for ships at sea. The Universal Postal Union
(which at U.S. urging recently has taken important steps to re-balance
the relationship between national postal authorities and private
deliverers such as Federal Express and United Parcel Service) is
working hard on strategies to counter the threat of toxic substances
transmitted through the mails.
But the UN has not only taken steps to end the threat of international
terrorism generally. It also has taken focused steps, both before and
after September 11, to block the threat posed by the Taliban regime of
Afghanistan and the Al-Qa'ida network it supported. Indeed, the range
of tools the UN can bring to bear can be seen in its approach to
Afghanistan over the last several years.
As early as November 1999, the Security Council imposed sanctions on
the Taliban (UNSCR 1267) after they refused to surrender Usama Bin
Laden. Later, in January 2001, the Council added additional sanctions,
including an arms embargo, an international freeze on Bin Laden's
assets, the closure of Taliban and Afghan Ariana Airline offices, and
other measures -- all in response to the Taliban's refusal to close
down terrorist training camps.
During the same period, UN humanitarian workers from the World Food
Program were attempting to mitigate Taliban restrictions against women
by giving them work in its bakeries, which fed literally thousands of
needy Afghan citizens. That effort ramped up dramatically as this
winter set in, and the World Food Program can be proud of its success
in helping avert widespread starvation. Even during the height of the
fighting, in November, thousands of children throughout Afghanistan
received vaccinations against polio and other diseases from health
workers trained by the World Health Organization, using medicines
supplied by UNICEF. United States public health systems, when first
faced with the anthrax threat, also turned to the World Health
Organization for information on its potential consequences. And the
Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees has switched its
emphasis from assisting literally millions of displaced Afghans to
helping increasing numbers to return home in safety and dignity.
As the situation stabilizes, the UN Development Program, which has
established a trust fund to assist the Afghan Interim Authority, is
working hard -- with the World Bank, bilateral donors and others, to
help the Afghans organize their government and move toward restoration
of their civilian economy and institutions.
U.S. military action, which brought to a swift end the Taliban regime,
is being complemented by the UN's actions to quickly put in place a
temporary government in Kabul. Lakhdar Brahimi, the Special
Representative of the Secretary General, has taken the lead, including
at the successful Bonn Conference, in bringing representative Afghan
leaders together to form the Afghan Interim Authority, which includes
two women ministers. Currently, UN efforts are focused on the
convening of a "Loya Jirga" assembly of Afghan leaders and on the
subsequent formation of a transitional and representative Afghan
government.
But civilian governance and economic reconstruction will not be
possible without security. In December the Security Council authorized
action by the International Security Assistance Force - ISAF, under
British leadership, to assist Afghans in reestablishing civil order in
Kabul. The ISAF is not a UN peacekeeping mission, and its costs are
not assessed to UN member states.
The UN system is also active in countering other international
threats.
In the face of the continuing threat posed to international security
by the Iraqi regime, the UN has in place a unique framework, which
couples the largest humanitarian program ever established, the Oil for
Food Program, with the most comprehensive set of economic sanctions
ever imposed on any nation. Very soon, we hope to put in place a new,
more rigorous inspection regime. The Security Council's Office of the
Iraq Program that administers humanitarian aid to Iraq; UNMOVIC; and
the Compensation Commission that distributes Iraqi assets to the
victims of its aggression -- all are funded from proceeds from Iraqi
oil, without assessment to UN member states.
Our bottom line is that Iraq must meet all of its obligations, as
spelled out in the Security Council's resolutions. There is
international consensus that Iraq has not done so to date. We are
working hard to translate that consensus into tougher, more focused
controls, while improving the situation of the Iraqi people. The Iraqi
regime is frustrated by the constraints placed upon its quest to
rebuild its military and its ability to threaten its neighbors as they
have done in the past. We are committed to seeing that it never can.
Not all threats are military. Rome is where the UN's Food and
Agriculture Organization sets quality and safety standards that help
protect American consumers and facilitate U.S. food and other
agricultural exports. The FAO is also a center for the science-based
approach to biotechnology, which the U.S. has strongly endorsed, both
for the nutrition and trade benefits it can produce, and for its
special relevance to assist developing nations. I am pleased to note
that President Bush recently announced his intention to nominate your
colleague, Congressman Tony Hall, as U.S. representative to the FAO
and the other UN agencies dealing with agricultural issues and
programs to alleviate world hunger.
I've mentioned only a few of the 43 agencies we currently support by
dues paid from the "Contributions to International Organizations"
account. That account also pays the U.S. contribution to the
Organization of American States, which is taking the lead in promoting
political reconciliation in Haiti and counter-terrorism efforts in our
hemisphere, as well as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
Other agencies - including the World Intellectual Property
Organization, the International Atomic Energy Agency, and other
regional bodies such as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development and the Organization for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
(APEC) - contribute in unique and important ways to advancing U.S.
national interests and the well being of Americans.
In response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, surely the greatest public
health threat facing the world today, the UN General Assembly convened
in special session last summer for UN agencies, high-level national
delegations and NGOs from around the world to meet and plan strategy.
The UN is now coordinating follow up on all of the commitments made
during last summer's UNGA special session.
American values were central to the founding of the United Nations,
and the UN today remains an important mechanism for defending American
values in the world, values such as democracy, human rights, and free
markets. Possibly the world's best-known venue for debating our common
heritage of values is the UN's Commission on Human Rights in Geneva.
This commission -- and its network of appointed "rapporteurs" --
remains an important world forum for addressing and advancing the
cause of human rights. We are currently consulting with other members
of the "Western European and Others Group" (WEOG) on substantive
issues to be addressed at the next session, later this month.
On the business side, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan is actively
promoting positive values through his "UN Global Compact with
Business" initiative, to engage private sector leaders worldwide in
support of human rights, the elimination of slave and child labor,
free trade unions, and environmental protection.
The administration has asked for the Senate to approve, on an urgent
basis, two UN "Optional Protocols" to the Convention on the Rights of
the Child, one to keep children away from armed conflicts and the
other to protect them from sexual exploitation. Support for the
Optional Protocols in no way implies support for the underlying
convention.
By supporting and, where appropriate, participating in UN
peacekeeping, the U.S. can share with other nations the heavy burden
of preventing, containing and resolving conflicts around the world,
effectively leverage our diplomatic, financial, military power in
several ways:
Security Council authorization provides international legitimacy,
centralized organization, and international cost sharing. Security
Council authorization makes it easier for other nations to contribute
the bulk of the troops on the ground. Currently, the United States
provides only 35 out of the total 39,500 military personnel deployed
in UN peacekeeping operations. This translates to a "multiplier" on
our investment of over 1,000 to 1. Overall, UN peacekeeping missions
advance US interests by preventing conflicts, restoring peace and
strengthening regional security generally.
Some important examples:
In Sierra Leone, the UN mission - UNAMSIL - has disarmed over 45,000
rebel and militia fighters, and largely brought the war to an end.
Elections are scheduled for this May.
In East Timor, three missions authorized by the Security Council have
organized the referendum on independence (UNAMET), restored stability
after violence broke out (INTERFET), and administered the territory as
it prepared for independence (UNTAET). UN peacekeepers, civilian
police, and civilian administrators are now beginning to turn their
jobs over to East Timorese as a new constituent assembly prepares for
independence in May.
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, UN peacekeepers are
bolstering a fragile political process. Although there is still a long
way to go, disengagement of foreign forces and their verified
withdrawal to defensive positions has been an important
accomplishment. We will continue to watch the situation carefully both
to ensure that no genuine chance for durable peace is overlooked, and
that false hopes do not lead to unnecessary risks to peacekeepers or
expense to member states. In Eritrea and Ethiopia, the UN mission,
UNMEE, has overseen a successful disengagement of forces. A UN
commission will soon determine a new, internationally recognized
border between these two nations.
In Kosovo, a new president has been elected and a new cabinet
confirmed following elections conducted in November by a UN mission,
UNMIK. Although the troop contributors to the KFOR coalition of the
willing, including the U.S., bear the costs of their military
deployment, the UN funds a few military observers, more than 4,500
civilian police, and a civilian staff to administer Kosovo in
cooperation with the local authorities. UNMIK is currently overseeing
a weapons amnesty program to encourage Kosovars to turn in illegal
firearms and ammunition without fear of punishment.
Budget Figures
As noted, although some of my remarks have covered UN activities
covered by voluntary contributions, we are here today to testify on
behalf of the President's FY 2003 request for funds to pay our annual
assessed contributions to the UN and over forty other international
organizations, and for UN assessed peacekeeping activities.
Now to the numbers.
We are requesting $891,378,000 for the Contributions to International
Organizations account, an amount which, consistent with statutory
restrictions, would enable us to pay in full our annual assessed
contributions to all forty-three international organizations funded
through this appropriation. This includes the UN and organizations in
the UN system, plus others, such as NATO, OECD, APEC and the
Inter-American organizations.
This total reflects the downward revisions in our dues, or "scales of
assessment" at several of these organizations, in line with the
reduction in our dues at the UN as called for in the Helms-Biden
legislation and voted by the General Assembly in December 2000. We are
continuing to press all the organizations to which we belong to
maintain no-growth budgets, improve effectiveness, and set priorities.
Our assessed share of the central UN's total budget for 2003 has risen
slightly (to $279.3 million) as the UN's own budget has increased (to
$2.625 billion), but this increase is less than inflation, and it
includes funding for important new initiatives supported by the U.S.,
including better security for UN personnel and enhanced headquarters
support for the Department of Peacekeeping Operations.
I should note here that the new UN budgeting process incorporates a
"results-based" approach strongly supported by the U.S. Also, we are
encouraged by Secretary General Annan's new initiative to improve UN
efficiency and effectiveness without increased staff or financial
resources.
For the Contributions for International Peacekeeping Activities (CIPA)
account, we are requesting $726 million to fund our projected
assessments to eleven UN peacekeeping missions and a portion of the
costs of two war crimes tribunals. These eleven missions do not
include the two missions expected to be completed, i.e. UNMIBH
(Bosnia) and UNMOP (Prevlaka - also in the Balkans) and the two
missions funded from the UN regular budget, i.e. UNTSO (Middle East)
and UNMOGIP (Kashmir). As previously noted, only a tiny fraction of
the more than 39,500 UN military peacekeepers currently deployed are
American. Of the approximately 7,500 civilian police deployed overseas
by the UN, less than ten percent are U.S.
Our peacekeeping request includes:
$273,226,000 for the UN Observer Mission in the Democratic Republic of
the Congo (MONUC),
$145,803,000 for the UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL),
$96,534,000 for the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo
(UNMIK),
$58,177,000 for the UN Transitional Administration in East Timor
(UNTAET), and
$55,594,000 for the UN mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE).
To echo Secretary Powell's testimony before this committee last week,
we seek your support to hold down the growth of arrears to the UN for
peacekeeping. An important part of our strategy to do this is to have
the current 25 percent "cap" on assessed peacekeeping payments lifted,
effective on the date that the new rates took effect, January 1, 2001.
Our budget estimates incorporate the new rate, although, of course, we
cannot obligate that money without new legislation being enacted. We
have carried forward the $78 million that lifting the cap would have
cost last year, so no new funds are needed to pay the FY 2001 portion.
But until the cap is lifted, we will continue to accumulate arrears
equal to the difference between 25 percent and our rate of assessment
for peacekeeping.
By the way, the recent decision of Switzerland to become the 190th
member of the UN should help spread the financing of UN peacekeeping,
as well as the regular UN budget, over a broader base. We won't know
by how much until they actually join the UN, probably late this year.
I want to emphasize that the United States critically reviews every
proposal for a new or enlarged UN peacekeeping mission. We analyze and
weigh carefully the potential value of the mission to U.S. interests.
We look to see whether proposed new or enlarged missions have clearly
defined goals and a realistic exit strategy. We only support new or
expanded missions when we judge the prospects for success in carrying
out the proposed mandate to be reasonable and achievable. We are
pleased to continue our monthly briefings for the staffs of this
committee and of the House of Representatives' International Relations
Committee on all aspects of UN peacekeeping. We believe that these
exchanges have improved communications, minimized surprises, and
broadened our perspective as we approach difficult policy decisions.
These missions are often complex, dangerous and difficult. In our
efforts to support UN reform, we have studied and agree with many of
the recommendations to improve operations of the UN Department of
Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) contained in the 2000 report of the
Brahimi Commission.
These recommendations focus on improving support to DPKO's
headquarters to enhance its ability to plan, monitor, and implement
the wide variety of UN peacekeeping missions around the world. DPKO
will never be for the UN what the Joint Staff is for the United
States, but we believe that current plans to strengthen DPKO's
headquarters should significantly improve its overall ability to
manage the UN's peacekeeping missions effectively. We also applaud the
presence of auditors from the UN's Office of Internal Oversight
Services (OIOS) in all of the large peacekeeping missions.
I would also like to remind the committee that we remain fully
committed to working for fair and proportionate representation of
American citizens throughout the UN system. We were pleased to see
that an American will continue to head the World Food Program, that
another American has been selected for an Assistant Secretary General
position in UNDP, and another to be Under Secretary General of the
World Intellectual Property Organization.
In closing, I would like to reiterate that our investment in the
United Nations and other international organizations provides us with
an effective mechanism to help maintain international peace and
security, coordinate international action, act collectively in
response to common problems, and advance our common human values.
Thank you very much.
(end text)
|
NEWSLETTER
|
|
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list
|
|
|
