The General Debate of the 66th Session of the United Nations General Assembly is happening in New York through September 30. The General Assembly is the main deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the United Nations, comprising all 193 Members of the United Nations. On this week's Please Explain we start off with Warren Hoge, Senior Advisor for External Relations for the International Peace Institute in New York and former foreign correspondent for the New York Times, covering the UN. Then we're joined by Vera Jelinek, Divisional Dean and Director of the Center for Global Affairs at New York University School of Continuing and Professional Studies, and Stanley Meisler, author of The United Nations: The First Fifty Years, and United Nations: A History, will tell us how the General Assembly works and what comes out of the sessions.
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Comments [7]
Yes - Andy - you're a great host. :)
I'll miss you, Andy!
I think the vote on Palestinian statehood proves relevancy for the UN. Who else will help countries in similar situations?
On a side note, Andy it's been nice having you this week, you're a good host.
I remember the Council on Foreign Relations put out a report last year recommending the US support expansion of the Security Council. What do your guests think is likely to happen and when?
NicholasWest
You hit it right on the head. Lots of appointees living well in Manhattan.
The UN agencies are so top down in terms of management. Appointments are very political at management levels and staff treat the bosses decisions in an unquestioning fashion. Difficult to disagree. What is the basis for this and is anything being done about it.
The UN has two functions:
It's a place where leaders get together and pretend to be "doing something", in order to pacify a suspicious and restive world populace. Like Obama's recent nonsense speech, where he stood there and filled his time by recounting the history of the UN.
It's also a meeting place where world leaders can get together behind closed doors and make evil and corrupt deals with each other.
That's all the UN is. A world pacifier and a world office building. Nothing of societal value takes place there. Indeed....on the contrary.
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