Trump Wants to Force Through his UN Reform. Russia and China Are Unimpressed

About two hours ago, addressing the leaders of 120 countries in New York, Donald Trump stated his claims to the United Nations. In his opinion, the international organization is mired in bureaucracy, and also, perhaps, most importantly, costs Washington too much.

About two hours ago, addressing the leaders of 120 countries in New York, Donald Trump stated his claims to the United Nations. In his opinion, the international organization is mired in bureaucracy, and also, perhaps, most importantly, costs Washington too much.

Trump hasn't proposed anything new yet but stressed that he doesn't want to pay. By the way, he immediately refused to talk to his opponents. The permanent members of the Security Council; Russia and China, are among 70 countries that didn't sign the State Department's declaration on the UN reform.

 

Valentin Bogdanov is reporting from the USA. Too many chiefs, not enough Indians. This was essentially Donald Trump's attitude as he gathered with heads of state at the summit dedicated to the proposed UN reform. It was prepared in such a hurry that the list of those who support the mysterious ten points point plan (which wasn't published until the last second), included those who disagree with it; for example, Venezuela, which doesn't have diplomatic relations with the United States.

Ukraine has them, but Poroshenko was so completely engrossed in a discussion with Boris Johnson that he made the whole entourage wait for him, including US ambassador Nikki Haley, who could not start for a couple of minutes. The representatives of 120 nations at this speedy, 18-minute long summit, took the role of extras.

The Americans did not give the floor even to their allies, as Trump followed Haley. The US President describes the UN as a club for people to get together and laments that America pays too much to support the organization. Trump treated Secretary-General Guterres as a subordinate in his corporation.

The United Nations has not reached its full potential because of bureaucracy and mismanagement. The USA isn't seeing the appropriate results. Responding to this address, the organization's leader tried to smooth out the rough edges, of which Trump's speech almost entirely consisted. Trump appointed himself the foreman of the UN's restructuring. Someone recently asked me what kept me up late at night.

My answer was simple. Bureaucracy, fragmented structures, byzantine procedures and endless red tape. The protocol photos taken at the end of the meeting don't contain any Russian and Chinese diplomats. This “brilliant” reform isn't supported by two prominent members of the Security Council, who are stressing that they aren't extras here.

The fact that Trump started the change without any mutual consent turned his plan into a closed-door deal. Russia's Permanent Representative to the UN Vasily Nebenzya warned: I'm not sure that we will sign this declaration, many of the ideas outlined in it are, of course, important, and follow the proposals put forward by the Secretary-General, but you can't reform the UN by a declaration.

Our diplomats are sure that the effectiveness of the global organization can only be increased through direct and open negotiations, and not through the writing of semi-secret instructions, which are unquestionably followed by those who focus exclusively on Washington.

The day before, in the evening, Sergei Lavrov had just barely arrived from a New York airport to the Russian permanent mission, when Secretary of State Tillerson rushed there to see our foreign minister. Behind closed doors, the heads of Russian and the US foreign ministries spent 45 minutes on discussing the Syria issue and the implementation of the Minsk accords.

It's more proof that Russia cannot be left on the sidelines of world politics, as in many other cases, including, of course, what Trump calls the UN reforms. Valentin Bogdanov and Ivan Utkin for Vesti from New York.