"The upcoming national election in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is not only a huge logistical undertaking but could shape the future of the rest of Africa, says former U.S. ambassador Bill Swing, who now heads up the 17,000-man United Nations peacekeeping force MONUC.
A sampling of United Nations related blog commentary
Tony Ferguson previews World Environment Day.
Steve Clemons suggests that "Iran will continue to try and split the five UN Security Council members."
Abhi at Sepia Mutiny blogs about AIDS in India.
Derek Chollet discusses Tony Blair's "far-reaching" ideas for UN Reform.
Captain's Quarters, a leading conservative blog, uses a standard anti-UN tactic: make gross generalizations about UN peacekeepers from a few bad examples. Captain Ed might want to take a look at this RAND study (pdf) which suggests the UN is better suited for peacekeeping missions than the U.S., finding it not only more efficient but also more effective.
Instapundit links to a Max Boot piece rebutted here by UN Dispatch's new featured blogger, Mark Goldberg.
Spork in the Drawer has more on Boot: "Boot conveniently fails to note that mercenaries don't fall under any laws or rules." (Hat tip: Busy, Busy, Busy)
In Wednesday's Los Angeles Times, Max Boot revisits the idea of sending mercenaries to Darfur in lieu of U.N. peacekeepers. This is something of a pet idea among a category of foreign policy thinkers in the United States who are generally skeptical about humanitarian interventions, but nonetheless want to "do something" about Darfur. Nikolas Gvosdev, editor of realist journal The National Interest, for example, raised this idea at a Cato Institute event in March.
"President Bush said Thursday that the standoff over Iran's suspected nuclear program is headed for the U.N. Security Council if Tehran continues to refuse to halt uranium enrichment.
"We'll see whether or not that is the firm position of their government," President Bush said after a meeting with his Cabinet at the White House. "If they continue their obstinance, if they continue to say to the world 'We really don't care what your opinion is," then the world is going to act in concert." [Full story]
NYT: "Stopping the epidemic of AIDS will require $22 billion a year by 2008 and possibly more in the following years, officials of the United Nations AIDS program said Wednesday. The $22 billion is nearly triple the $8.3 billion spent last year by all sources, including governments and the private sector.
United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan vowed to continue working for the release of Myanmar democracy leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, whose house arrest the authorities have extended.
To Ed Lasky, the Secretary General's decision to evacuate non-essential U.N. personnel from East Timor is proof positive of the U.N.'s inherent fecklessness: "Meant to protect civilians, UN staff have run away from the capital of East Timor after an outbreak of violence... If someone says "boo" to them, they turn tail." Lasky, however, does not bother to mention that those workers who were evacuated from East Timor last week were civil servants who perform important (but in a conflict zone, non-essential) tasks such as HIV/Aids education, civil society training, legal work, and more.
AP: "The world continues to lose an ugly battle to HIV/AIDS that shows no sign of letting up after 25 million people have died a quarter-century into the epidemic, the head of the U.N.'s HIV/AIDS joint program said.