Joseph A. Klein, CFP United Nations Columnist

The 2012 Democratic Party Platform Cold-Shoulders Israel

Despite some introductory bromides proclaiming the "unshakable commitment" of President Obama and the Democratic Party to Israel’s security, the 2012 Democratic National Platform, entitled "Moving America Forward," mirrors perfectly President Obama's decision to turn his back on our closest ally in the Middle East. It represents a radical break with prior Democratic Party platforms, not to mention its counterparts issued by the Republican Party, that have expressed unequivocal support for the Jewish state.

Ban Ki-Moon’s Shameful Visit To Tehran

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon succumbed to pressure from Iran and its anti-American allies by deciding to attend a summit meeting in Tehran later this week of the 120 member "Non-Aligned Movement." Iran is heralding Ban Ki-moon's visit to Tehran as proof positive of its unbowed diplomatic prowess. Israel and the United States tried to dissuade Ban Ki-moon from attending, but to no avail.

New UN Peace Envoy To Syria Is No Peacemaker

Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi has accepted the position of Joint Special Representative of the United Nations and League of Arab States for Syria, replacing former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan whose six-point peace plan is dead. The United Nations spokesman announcing the appointment said that the "Secretary-General appreciates Mr. Brahimi's willingness to bring his considerable talents and experience to this crucial task for which he will need, and rightly expects, the strong, clear and unified support of the international community, including the Security Council."

United Nations Ignores Al Qaeda Link To Syrian Armed Opposition

A day after Kofi Annan, the Joint Special Envoy for the UN and the League of Arab States for the Syrian Crisis, announced his decision to resign in frustration over the failure of the United Nations Security Council to pass a strong resolution that would enforce compliance with his six point Syrian peace plan, Arab League members led by Saudi Arabia and Qatar went to the UN General Assembly for a symbolic vote on a resolution strongly condemning the Assad regime.

UN Arms Trade Treaty Negotiations Coming Down To The Wire

The United Nations Arms Trade Treaty negotiations are coming down to the wire. A new draft of the treaty language was circulated on July 24th, with the hope that a consensus could be reached before the scheduled deadline for completion of the treaty by July 27th. The draft does not please the arms control crowd, who believe it is full of loopholes.

Syrian Post-Mortem At Turtle Bay

Russia and China predictably vetoed the proposed United Nations Security Council resolution authorizing sanctions against the Syrian regime, which was submitted for a vote on July 19th by the United Kingdom.

UN Security Council Spins In Circles While Syria Spins Out Of Control

Since the start of the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began some 16 months ago more than 10,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in Syria and tens of thousands have been displaced, according to United Nations estimates.

A United Nations Gun Control Treaty Coming Soon

Government representatives from more than 190 countries, under the watchful eyes of gun control advocates such as Amnesty International and the Control Arms Coalition, are currently in negotiations at the United Nations headquarters in New York to hammer out the terms of the first UN Arms Trade Treaty (ATT). The treaty is supposed to fill the gap caused by the absence of commonly agreed international standards for the transfer of conventional arms, including guns, and their diversion to the illicit market.

The United Nations Rewards Iran

Last May, according to Reuters, a panel of sanctions-monitoring experts reported to the Security Council's Iran sanctions committee that Iran shipped weapons to the Syrian regime, helping to enable the regime to massacre its citizens and violating a UN ban on weapons exports by Iran.

The UN’s Dead End In Syria

The United Nations Security Council met in a closed session on June 19th regarding the ongoing Syrian crisis. It heard from Maj. General Robert Mood, the commander of the three hundred unarmed UN observers who are supposed to monitor the situation in Syria but have been stymied. Herve Ladsous, the Under Secretary General for Peacekeeping Operations, also addressed the Security Council members.

United Nations Officials Protest U.S. Law Enforcement’s Handling of Occupy Wall Street Squatters

United Nations officials are using American taxpayers' money, which subsidizes UN operations, to put their noses where they do not belong - U.S. police efforts to enforce the law against Occupy Wall Street squatters in various cities across the United States.

The Crisis In Syria - What Now?

The United Nations Security Council held another inconclusive Middle East debate on March 12th, focusing largely on the continuing massacres in Syria. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton participated, along with her counterparts from Russia, France, the United Kingdom and other members of the Security Council.

President Obama’s Speech To AIPAC

President Obama took the stage on Sunday morning March 4th at the annual American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) conference to deliver assurances of his unwavering support for Israel. He declared to AIPAC's fervent pro-Israel audience that his commitment to Israel's security has been unprecedented. "When the chips are down, I have Israel's back," Obama said.

Stalemate at the United Nations While The Slaughters Continue in Syria

Nearly 6000 Syrians have died during the 10-month revolt against the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, including hundreds of children. In one of the worst single day outbursts of violence, which occurred on February 3rd, the death toll from shelling by Syrian security forces in the city of Homs alone exceeded 200.

Morocco’s Anti-Israel Hypocrisy At The UN

Morocco, replacing Lebanon on the United Nations Security Council, wasted no time in raising the issue of Israeli settlements after a closed door Security Council meeting on January 10th about the unrelated topic of Children and Armed Conflict. As the United States representative is reported to have pointed out, Morocco's request was "ill-timed and counter-productive." Morocco's decision to begin its tenure on the Security Council by carrying the Palestinians' torch on the Israeli settlements issue is also the height of hypocrisy, considering Morocco's continuing illegal occupation of the Western Sahara territory and repression of its people who yearn for self-determination.

The Obama Administration’s Islamist Whitewashing Campaign

The Obama administration continues to deny that we are at war with Islamist jihadists. Indeed, the word "jihad" itself is forbidden in Obama-land if used to describe the Islamist warriors. At its highest levels, the Obama administration insists on using bland euphemisms rather than accurate language describing the Islamist ideology we are fighting.

The NAACP Sics The UN On Our Sovereign States

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is petitioning the United Nations to investigate alleged disenfranchisement of black and Latino voters in anticipation of next year's presidential election. According to the NAACP, which issued a report on December 5, 2011 entitled Defending Democracy: Confronting Modern Barriers to Voting Rights in America, more than a dozen states have passed laws aimed at unfairly restricting the constitutionally protected right of black and Hispanic voters to vote.

The UN’s International Day of Solidarity Against the Jews

There is no single issue on which the United Nations expends more time and energy than its advocacy of the Palestinian cause. It dominates the agendas of various UN bodies, supported by American taxpayer dollars, including the UN Human Rights Council, the Division for Palestinian Rights, the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Human Rights Practices Affecting the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories, the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees.

President Obama Misleads the Public on Iran

Speaking from the lush Hawaiian venue of the Asia-Pacific economic summit, Obama falsely claimed during a televised news conference on November 13th that "we are in a much stronger position now than we were two or three years ago with respect to Iran."

Palestinian UN Membership Application Deadlocked

The Palestinian bid to become the 194th member state of the United Nations has come one step closer to collapse - at least for now. There has been no formal Security Council vote as of yet. However, the United Nations Security Council's Committee on the Admission of New Members, consisting of representatives from all fifteen Security Council member states, adopted a report on November 11th indicating that they were unable to reach a consensus concerning what recommendation to make to the Security Council on the Palestinian application for full membership in the United Nations.