UN 65th General Assembly Concludes
United Nations, Sep 12. -The 65th UN General Assembly concludes Monday after a year of many discussions and few concrete results, and under the absolute dominance of the Security Council. The top UN body devoted the last 12 months to discussing an extensive list of issues, some of them new and most discussed before but still yet to be resolved.
For outgoing General Assembly president Joseph Deiss of Switzerland, achievements in reducing poverty, environment, sustainable development and "global governance" were analyzed during this year.
All these matters are part of the so-called Millennium Development Goals set by the UN in 2000 to be fulfilled by 2015, something that many now recognize as impossible.
The Security Council is made up of the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Russia, and China as permanent members with the right to veto, and Colombia, Brazil, Lebanon, Nigeria, India, Portugal, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Gabon, South Africa, and Germany, as temporary members for a two-year period.
Demands to change the Security Council include accusations about its clear attempts to go beyond its powers and functions and interfere in General Assembly affairs.
During the 65th General Assembly, the United States was the only Security Council member to apply this privilege to prevent condemnation of Israel for continuing to build Israeli colonies in the occupied Palestinian territories.
The Security Council passed Resolution 1973, on NATO military intervention in Libya, approved by Britain, the United States, France, Lebanon, Colombia, Nigeria, Portugal, Gabon, South Africa and Bosnia and Herzegovina, while Russia, China, Brazil, India and Germany abstained.
Beginning later this month, the 66th General Assembly president will be Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, who was Qatarâ�Ös permanent representative to the UN for the last 13 years. (Prensa Latina)
