Joseph A. Klein, CFP United Nations Columnist

How Putin is out-maneuvering Obama in Syria

In what has become a monthly ritual, the United Nations Security Council received a briefing on March 30th regarding the very dire humanitarian conditions in war-torn Syria.

Turkey is the Wrong Choice to Host the UN’s First Global Humanitarian Summit

The first-ever United Nations-sponsored World Humanitarian Summit is scheduled to take place May 23-24, 2016 in Istanbul, Turkey. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon praised Turkey’s “compassionate leadership” in hosting the summit and its “admirable commitment to humanitarian action.”

Prime Minister Trudeau Embraces the United Nations

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visited United Nations headquarters in New York today and declared Canada's commitment to fully supporting the United Nations agenda, including the Paris climate change agreement, human rights (particularly the rights of refugees) and UN peacekeeping.

Iran’s Free Hand in Testing Dangerous Ballistic Missiles

The United Nations Security Council met in an “emergency” closed door session on Monday March 14th to discuss Iran’s recent testing of ballistic missiles reportedly designed to be capable of delivering nuclear weapons. The words “Israel must be wiped out” were written in Hebrew on the side of the missiles. These most recent tests followed in the wake of missile tests conducted last fall, which the Security Council did nothing about at the time.

UN Security Council Finally Passes Tough North Korean Measures, At Least On Paper

The United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution on March 2nd that imposes tough new sanctions and tightens some of its existing measures against North Korea. Resolution 2270 (2016) was the Security Council’s latest and strongest response to the rogue North Korean regime’s ongoing nuclear and ballistic missile-related test activities in violation of a series of prior Security Council resolutions.

Venezuelan Hypocrisy at the UN Security Council

The United Nations Security Council held an open debate Monday on the topic of "Respect for the Principles and Purposes of the Charter as a Key Element for the Maintenance of International Peace and Security." Venezuela holds the presidency of the Security Council this month. Venezuela's Minister of Foreign Affairs Delcy Rodríguez, sitting in the Security Council president's chair, delivered remarks in her national capacity that channeled the spirit of the late Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. Her self-righteous appeal for adherence to the UN Charter was an exercise in hypocrisy.

The UN’s “Frothing of Words”

Winston Churchill warned about the potential for the United Nations to turn into “merely a frothing of words.” If Churchill had seen the UN in action these last several weeks trying to deal with crises in Syria and North Korea, he would have concluded that his warning was not heeded.

Speculators and Alarmists Unduly Exaggerate Concerns over China’s Economy

According to the preliminary estimates of the National Bureau of Statistics of China, the gross domestic product (GDP) of China increased by 6.9 percent in 2015. Nevertheless, while this rate of growth of China’s economy compares very favorably with the U.S. growth rate of 2.4 percent, alarmists have offered dire assessments of the state of China’s economy as 2016 got underway and China’s stock market took a nose dive.

Don't Shoot at the Truth, Mr. Secretary General

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon came under heavy criticism last week from Israel and its supporters for remarks he delivered to the UN Security Council regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. His critics, including yours truly, considered his remarks a one-sided takedown of Israeli policies and a justification for Palestinian violence against defenseless Israeli civilians.

UN Secretary General Starts New Year Rationalizing Palestinian Violence

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon began his January 26th briefing to the Security Council regarding the situation in the Middle East by declaring: “Sadly, 2016 has begun much like 2015 ended – with unacceptable levels of violence and a polarized public discourse across the spectrum in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory.” True enough, but he left out the fact that 2016 has also begun, much like 2015 ended, with one-sided UN denunciations of Israel and excuses for Palestinian acts of terror. Ban Ki-moon’s first remarks to the Security Council this year on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are no exception.

UN Plan to Prevent Violent Extremism Ignores its Primary Cause

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is operating from the same playbook as President Obama when it comes to addressing the threat of global jihad. They deny that such a religiously based threat exists. Just like Obama, Ban Ki-moon uses the euphemism “violent extremism,” without linking it to its primary ideological source - Islam. The global terrorist scourge is driven by Islamic supremacy and the jihadist war against the “infidels” that are embedded in sharia law. That is not to say that the jihadists are the only terrorists in the world. However, to diffuse responsibility by contending that violent extremism is found in all faiths ignores the fact that the only global terrorist network threatening our way of life today is bound together by the teachings of Islam.

North Korea and Iran: The Nuclear Duo

North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test on January 6th, which it claimed was a hydrogen bomb. Despite some skepticism as to North Korea’s claim that it had actually tested a hydrogen bomb, the Obama administration acknowledged that North Korea had indeed tested some sort of nuclear device. The administration condemned North Korea’s latest testing as a violation of a series of past United Nations Security Council resolutions.

China’s New Counter-Terrorism Law

China has just passed a new law requiring technology firms to provide “technical means of support” for the government’s counter-terrorism activities, including to help de-crypt information if the government demands them to do so. The firms are also enlisted in efforts to prevent the spread of incendiary materials that could incite acts of terrorism.

Kicking the Can in Syria Down the Road to Damascus

The United Nations Security Council unanimously approved a resolution on December 18th which purports to set out a framework and timetable for ending the nearly five year war in Syria and establishing an “inclusive and Syrian-led political process.”

Obama Administration Clears Path for Iran

Iran is already in flagrant violation of its obligations under United Nations Security Council resolutions referenced in the nuclear agreement known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), signed on July 14, 2015 by Iran, the five permanent members of the Security Council and Germany. Nevertheless, the Obama administration is making excuses for Iran. It is still on track to reward Iran soon with the freeing up of over $100 billion in frozen assets and the lifting of economic sanctions.

The Parisian Follies

Nearly 200 countries reached consensus in Paris on what President Obama has called an “historic agreement” to combat man-made climate change. Their host, French President Francois Hollande, extolled the work of the negotiators. He said “you will be able to say that on the twelfth of December you were in Paris for the agreement on the climate. And you will be able to be proud to stand before your children and your grandchildren."

President Obama’s Pursuit of a Bad Global Climate Deal

On the heels of his Thanksgiving Day anointment of Syrian refugees as the new Pilgrims, President Obama flew off to Paris for a summit meeting launching the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP21). This conference is being heralded as the last opportunity for the world’s nations to come together and deal meaningfully with the deleterious impacts said to be caused by man-made climate change.

Turkey Risks Wider War and Undercuts Fight Against ISIS

While admitting that he was not in possession of all of the facts regarding Turkey’s downing of a Russian warplane on November 24th, President Obama was quick to blame only Russia. He said at a joint news conference with French President Francois Hollande that Turkey had “a right to defend its territory and its airspace.”

"Zionism is Racism” Ideology Lives on at the United Nations

At a special event held at United Nations headquarters in New York on November 11th entitled “The battle for Zionism at the United Nations,” the UN commemorated the 40th anniversary of the speech by Israel’s late president and UN ambassador, Chaim Herzog, against the infamous General Assembly Resolution 3379 that equated Zionism to racism.

Alleged Influence Peddling and Image Laundering for Sale at the United Nations

Public corruption can appear in various forms. First, individual office holders may violate the public trust, abusing their positions of authority to peddle influence for money. The public institutions which they are supposed to serve may not be inherently corrupt themselves but they may enable such schemes by virtue of inadequate internal controls. Second, and potentially more pernicious, is institutional corruption.