United Nations

Pence Calls for Reforms to UN Rights System

November 28, 2017

In recent remarks to the UN Security Council calling for human rights reform at the UN, US Vice President Mike Pence asserted that the UN Human Rights Council "doesn't deserve its name," as its members include "many of the worst human rights violators in the world" and it has become a mere "invective against Israel."
Israeli Leader Criticizes "Anti-Semitism" at UN

November 28, 2017

In his September speech before the UN General Assembly, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denounced anti-Semitism in the decisions of the world body and its agencies, including in the UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO) recognition of the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron as a Palestinian World Heritage Site.
UN Chief Commits to Reforming Bureaucracy

November 28, 2017

At an event in September hosted by US President Donald Trump, 120 countries supported a declaration supporting UN reforms that UN Secretary-General António Guterres said would purportedly cut bureaucratic red tape and provide "value for money while advancing shared values" at the international organization.
UN Report Seeks Redistribution to Achieve "Sustainability"

November 27, 2017

A recent report from the UN Conference on Trade and Development expressed concerns about a slow-growing world economy and, as a solution, called for a 21st-Century "global new deal," which it defined as an "ambitious and collaborative effort to tackle the inequities of hyperglobalization to build inclusive and sustainable economies."
UN Observer Decries Violations of "Right to Development"

November 27, 2017

A warning from UN Special Rapporteur on the right to development Saad Alfarargi that climate change and economic crises are violating the "human right" of impoverished people to development demonstrates the widespread efforts in the UN human rights apparatus to embed the concept of social and economic rights throughout the UN system.
WHO Laments Lack of Progress on NCDs

November 27, 2017

A September report from the UN's World Health Organization (WHO) on government measures to address noncommunicable disease (NCD) risk factors such as unhealthy diets and smoking warns that the world is not on track to meet the UN targets on NCDs and pushes for "bolder political action" by governments in the face of "interference by powerful economic operators."
Leadership Network Seeks Urgent Climate Efforts

November 21, 2017

The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has announced the creation of a Climate Action Leadership Network by national governments seeking to encourage countries around the world to urgently ramp up their commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as part of the UN's Paris climate deal.
State Governors Reject US Rejection of Paris Deal

November 21, 2017

An article in The New York Times reporting the participation by governors of some US states in meetings with global leaders on climate change at a recent session of the UN General Assembly illustrates how some state leaders are sidestepping official US foreign policy to commit to the UN climate agreement rejected by the Trump Administration.
UN Report Blames Climate Change for Growing Hunger

November 20, 2017

Indicating the lock-step nature in which the UN system is pushing the organization's agenda on global warming, a recent report on food security and nutrition from a group of UN agencies blames climate change as a "major driver" of an increase in "hunger" around the world.
Bolton: UN Reform Resolution Is Mere "Rhetoric"

November 20, 2017

In an interview with Fox News, former US Ambassador to the UN John Bolton dismissed a US-sponsored resolution on UN reform as "just the usual rhetoric" and called for countries to move to a system of purely voluntary contributions to the UN to further significant changes and create accountability within the international organization.