Experts believe that the recent announcement of the resignation of the US Ambassador to the UN is an indirect sign that the American foreign policy is changing.
Valentin Bogdanov with the details on Nikki Haley's resignation.
The US Mission to the UN is located closer to the HQ of the international organization than any other mission. One has to cross 1st Avenue to get to this odd-looking skyscraper. Soundproof walls of reinforced concrete and arrowslit-windows. Its look is supposed to remind who's the boss and not just in this New York neighborhood. The building of the US Mission to the UN constructed after 9/11 has been compared to a medieval tower and the way America positions itself in the world: We're safe inside and don't really care what happens on the outside. Nikki Haley had been the master of the tower for two years. Before she began to realize that it was too tight for her political ambitions.
Haley's appointment was a rare stroke of luck for Trump. The staff turnover at the White House is astonishing. First, she was a woman in a male-dominated administration. Secondly, her full name is Nimrata Randhawa; her parents come from Amritsar, India. However, Haley's a Christian and married a military captain who served in Afghanistan. And the main thing, despite the fact that she supported Trump's rival senators Rubio and Cruz when she was running for South Carolina Governor, she's never given him reason to doubt her devotion to his policy.
- Ambassador, shall we expect new strikes against Syria?
Nikki Haley, US Ambassador to UN: "The time for talk is over. We had to act and last night, we did".
She's talking about the April attack on Syria. It was the initiative of Trump's National Security Adviser John Bolton. Trump appointed him a week before this brief conversation. A week later, Haley got a new superior: Mike Pompeo was appointed as Secretary of State. Both treated the UN with skepticism. Both (almost everybody in the US is sure about that) were the reason she suddenly resigned.
Max Boot, military historian: "In her first year in office, State Secretary Rex Tillerson was in the shadows so she acted as the US spokesperson at the UN. The National Security Adviser gave her an opportunity to act freely. However, Bolton and Pompeo are stronger and much more qualified for the fight within the bureaucratic system".
Choose whatever you want, said Donald Trump to Nikki Haley when he summoned her to the Oval Office after getting her resignation letter. The Ambassador said she won't be running for President in 2020 and chose freedom for the time being.
Nikki Haley: "There's no personal reason. The government must know when it's time to take a step back. Over the last eight years, I did everything I could. And I believe other people should step in and bring new powers".
"No personal reason" might mean that there's an external reason. What if it's all about the money?
Lawrence O'Donnell, political analyst: "And in the meantime, she definitely wants to earn a lot of money. She's not one of the rich members of Trump's administration. She mainly lived off her paycheck".
However, some people believe otherwise. Social activists accuse Haley of secretly receiving $25,000 worth of bribes. Businessmen from South Carolina were allegedly paying for her flights. Her Security Council counterparts point out her other qualities. In the UN, she learned to listen partially thanks to the Patriarch of American diplomacy. Once a month, Haley had breakfast with Henry Kissinger who gave her valuable advice on China and Russia.
Vasily Nebenzya, Russia's Ambassador to UN: "I regret that she is leaving because we had a good working and personal relationship despite all the differences. She's still in office so it wasn't really a resignation. It was an announcement of her resignation. We'll have enough time to work together until the end of her American ambassadorship".
The press will also miss her at the UN.
- I'm a Kurd.
Donald Trump: Great people.
- Mr. President…
- Yes, please, Mr. Kurd.
Trump's ridiculous way of addressing Majeed Gly as "Mr. Kurd" made the Iraqi-Kurd reporter the main media star of the General Assembly.
Majeed Gly, Rudaw: "Well, I'm not style and fashion expert but I think her image supported by her clothes and the way she presents herself makes others respect her. She's tough, extremely ambitious, and very active. That's why I don't believe it'll be the end of her political career. Nikki Haley will go far".
But who can replace the only member of the current administration who was almost equally liked by the Republicans and the Democrats? One of the first names called was Ivanka Trump, President's daughter.
Donald Trump, President of the USA: "I think Ivanka would be incredible in this office. But that doesn't mean I'd appoint her. I’d be accused of nepotism even if there's no one more competent in the world. But that's fine, we're considering many candidates. Curiously enough, we also discussed the candidate you've just mentioned".
However, Dina Powell who Trump mentioned has already refused. Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell is still on the shortlist. Nevertheless, a strong move would be to appoint the weaker sex for example, Ambassador to Canada Kelly Knight Craft, as well as the founder of the Breast Cancer Foundation Nancy Brinker, or Ambassador to NATO Hutchinson.
Haley promised Trump that she'd stay till mid-January. By that time, she's likely to decide what she aims to do next. And as a girl from the South, she knows not only how to aim but also how to hit her targets, regardless of the hostile winds.
Valentin Bogdanov, Ivan Utkin, and Evgeny Kononov, Vesti on Saturday, the UN Headquarters.
