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DEDICATED TO A STRONG U.S.UN RELATIONSHIP

The United States and theUnited Nations in the 112th Congress

2012 Briefing Book Update

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Dear Colleague:

Last year, the Better World Campaign (BWC) and the United Nations Association o the United States o Amer-ica (UNA-USA) developed a brieng book with inormation on the critical work o the United Nations and how itbenets American interests. This year, we are providing an update to alert you to notable achievements in 2011and how the U.S. and UN continue to work together to create a more secure, prosperous, and healthy world.

The UN is not a perect institution, but it serves a near-perect purpose: to promote global cooperation to ad-dress some o the worlds most pressing challenges that no single country can resolve alone. By allowing ournation to share the burden o promoting international peace and stability with the rest o the international com-munity, U.S. engagement with the UN helps buttress core American oreign policy, economic, national security,and humanitarian priorities around the worldrom sub-Saharan Arica to the Western Hemisphere.

In 2011, the UN continued to advance key U.S. interests by serving as an indispensable platorm or interna-tional cooperation on a number o security issues, rom global counter-terrorism eorts to curbing nuclear pro-lieration by rogue regimes. As U.S. troops completed their withdrawal rom Iraq and began to leave Aghani-stan, the UN bolstered eorts to rebuild those war-torn societies, and UN peacekeepers worked to stabilizesome o the worlds most hazardous and operationally dicult confict zones.

In addition, the UN maintained its leadership role on a range o humanitarian, economic, and development is-sues, providing liesaving aid to millions stricken by amine in the Horn o Arica, addressing the root causeso poverty through the Millennium Development Goals, and seeking to improve global health and empowerwomen. Constructive U.S. engagement with the UN is key to the success o these activities and will continueto play a pivotal role in the UNs ongoing eorts to address the global challenges o the 21st century.

For these reasons and many others, it is critical that the U.S. honor its nancial obligations to the UN by pay-ing its peacekeeping and regular budget dues on time and in ull. While the U.S. currently aces a number odicult budgetary choices, cutting unding to the UN will not solve our nations scal challenges - it may, inact, lead to greater expenditures in certain areas - and it will imperil vital UN programs that advance Americaninterests and values on the world stage. According to research undertaken by a bipartisan polling team latelast year, this view is shared by the wide majority o American voters. Nearly 86% o Americans believe it isimportant or the U.S. to maintain an active role within the UN system, and strong majorities (64% and 71%

respectively) support the ull and timely payment o our nations regular and peacekeeping dues.

The enclosed update touches on the aorementioned issues along with other matters related to U.S.-UN en-gagement. We hope you nd these materials helpul and invite you to call us at 202.462.4900 or visit our web-sites at betterworldcampaign.org or unausa.org to obtain additional inormation. We look orward to workingwith you in the uture to advance a strong U.S.-UN relationship.

Sincerely,

Peter Yeo Patrick Madden

Executive Director Executive DirectorBetter World Campaign United Nations Association o the United States o America

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About BWC & UNA-USA

The UN: Beneting the U.S. Economy

UN Specialized Agencies: Promoting U.S. Business, Security and Hu-

manitarian Interests

U.S. Dues and Contributions to the UN

The Importance o Paying our Assessed UN Regular Budget Dues

UN Strengthening and Reorm

Peace and Security Issues

Peacekeeping

Counter-terrorism

Preventing Nuclear Prolieration

United Nations on the Ground

UN Mission in Iraq

UN Mission in Aghanistan

UN Missions in South Sudan

Horn o Arica

Global Health and Human Rights

Promoting Global Health and Preventing Disease Through Partnerships

Championing Women and Girls

The Millennium Development Goals: Looking Forward to 2015 and Beyond

Human Rights Council

International Agreements

Table o Contents

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3

4

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About The Better World Campaign & UNA-USA

Our Missions

The Better World Campaign (BWC) works to oster a strong, eective relationship between the United Statesand the United Nations to promote core American interests and build a more secure, prosperous, and healthyworld. BWC engages policymakers, the media, and the American public alike to increase awareness o the criti-cal role played by the UN in world aairs and the importance o constructive U.S.-UN relations.

The United Nations Association o the United States o America (UNA-USA) is a grassroots organization with125 chapters and 12,000 members nationwide devoted to strengthening the U.S.-UN relationship through pub-

lic education and advocacy. For more than six decades, UNA-USA and its chapters and regions have stoodat the oreront o building American support or the UN. The Better World Campaign and UNA-USA togetherrepresent the single largest network o advocates and supporters o the UN in the world.

2012 Agenda

Each year, BWC and UNA-USA educate Americans and policymakers around our core elements o the U.S.-UNrelationship: ull payment o dues or the UNs regular and peacekeeping budgets, UN reorm, the MillenniumDevelopment Goals, and approval o UN treaties. In 2012, we will continue to pursue and build on these ourprinciples to demonstrate the benets o constructive U.S. engagement with the UN and how, working withthe UN, we can better address the global challenges o the 21st century. We will work with Congress and the

Administration on a range o issues, including:

Payment o our nations UN regular budget and peacekeeping dues on time, in ull, and without condi-tions, the removal o the Congressionally imposed arbitrary peacekeeping cap, and the reversal o theU.S. policy o paying dues one year late;

Greater support or UN peacekeeping operations and or U.S. assistance in managing the large num-ber o missions by working with the UN to develop its capabilities in logistics, training, doctrine, andmanagement expertise;

Increased awareness about the work being perormed by UN specialized agencies around the worldand heightened support or ully unding their crucial mandates;

Constructive engagement on structural and management reorms at the UN and the implementationo ongoing reorms;

Advancement o the Millennium Development Goals;

Senate passage o key international agreements that we have signed but not yet ratied, including theUN Convention on the Law o the Sea, the Convention on the Elimination o Discrimination AgainstWomen, and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.

A Program of The United Nations Foundation

The United States and the United Nations during the 112 th Congress

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The UN: Benefting the U.S. Economy

For more than six decades, U.S. engagement with the UN has played a crucial role in advancing Americasoreign policy, national security, and economic interests on the world stage. Besides promoting these core stra-tegic objectives, however, the UNs work also directly benets thousands o U.S. businesses through procure-ment contracts and returns to the New York City economy. In act, or every $1 our nation contributes to the

UN Secretariatthe institution responsible or carrying out the day-to-day work o managing the UNs generaoperations globallywe receive more than $1.60 back. In light o the dicult budgetary choices currently acingour nation, this level o return on our investment in the UN is truly noteworthy.

Procuring American Goods and Services

In 2010, the UN Secretariat purchased more than $830 million worth o goods and services rom over 3,500U.S. companies based in locations as diverse as San Jose, CA; Southeld, MI; Morrisville, NC; and Miami, FLCompanies that have contracted with the UN include such pillars o the U.S. economy as Ford Motor Com-pany, Caterpillar, and CISCO, and provide everything rom vehicles to engineering and electronic equipment tosupport core UN missions and activities. The U.S. benets rom the UN in a variety o ways, including through

The Capital Master Plan: The Capital Master Plan (CMP) is a ve-year project to renovate UN

Headquarters in New York by updating building and re saety codes so that they comply with cur-rent standards or security, energy eciency, and accessibility. Construction began in 2008 and U.S.companies have been awarded 80 o the 82 contracts a total investment o $1.7 billion in the U.Seconomy over ve years. As part o our assessed dues, the U.S. will contribute $377 million to the$1.95 billion total project budget. Consequently, or every dollar the U.S. puts into the Capital MasterPlan, it gets back $4.50.

UN Peacekeeping Operations: In 2010, the U.S. received more than $188 million in contracts tosupport 15 UN peacekeeping operations around the world. American companies are on the ground inplaces like Haiti, Lebanon, South Sudan, and Liberia supporting these critical peacekeeping missionsby providing telecommunications lines, inormation technology services, earthmoving machines, andbuilding materials, among other crucial supplies.

Beneting the Big Apple

New York City benets greatly rom the daily business o UN headquarters, with one past estimate putting theBig Apples total annual economic gain rom the UNs presence at $3.3 billion. Visitors attending UN coner-ences held in New York inuse millions into the citys economy, with the annual opening o the General Assemblysession alone generating revenue comparable to a major international convention or sporting event. This type oannual conerence is not aected by economic recessions, so these large expenditures will be made each yearwhich can be especially benecial in a dicult economy. Finally, the UN plays an important role in boosting NewYorks tourism industry. The world body hosts an average o more than 1 million visitors each year, providingbusiness to local hotels and restaurants.

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UN Specialized Agencies: Promoting U.S.

Business, Security and Humanitarian Interests

The UN system is comprised o the UN Secretariat, whose headquarters is in New York, and more than thirty

aliated organizationsprograms, unds, and specialized agenciesthat work with and through the UN topromote global security and prosperity.

In terms o the specialized agencies, through their work, they promote core U.S. oreign policy, economicnational security, and humanitarian goals every day. In addition to these benets, American engagement withthese agencies is an extremely cost-eective way to address global challenges, as other Member States ootthe bill or the vast majority o their costs.

Provided below is a brie snapshot o the work o several o these agencies and how they advanceU.S. interests.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The IAEA works to prevent, detect, and respond to the illicit

or non-peaceul use o nuclear material, conducting monitoring and inspection activities in 150 countriesto veriy compliance with international nuclear saeguard agreements. In 2003, the IAEA unmasked Libyashidden nuclear weapons program. In 2010, with strong U.S. support, the board o the IAEA voted to set upa global nuclear uel bank that aspiring nations can turn to or reactor uel instead o making it themselvesthereby reducing the risk o global prolieration. For nearly a decade, the IAEAs monitoring activities inIran have played a pivotal role in bolstering eorts to curb that countrys nuclear ambitions. In November2011, the agency issued a report detailing evidence o a military dimension to Irans nuclear program. TheIAEAs ndings provided the impetus or enhanced sanctions targeting the Iranian nuclear program by theU.S., EU, and Canada.

World Health Organization (WHO). WHO serves as a coordinating authority on international public healthIt is responsible or leading the global response to public health emergencies, monitoring outbreaks oinectious disease, spearheading global vaccination eorts, and developing campaigns to eradicate liethreatening diseases like polio and malaria. Every year, the WHO investigates 200 to 250 disease out-breaks. In 2003, WHO helped stop the spread o SARS beore it could reach and inect tens o thousandso people. In 2009 and 2010, WHO steered eorts to prevent the spread o the H1N1 virus.

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). WIPO encourages American innovation and economicgrowth through the registration and protection o patents, copyrights, and other orms o intellectual prop-erty, as well as through the adjudication o cross-border disputes on intellectual property. In the last yeaalone, dozens o major American companies have brought cases beore WIPO, including the American

Automobile Association, Apple, The North Face, Costco, and Facebook. Moreover, according to the U.S

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Chamber o Commerce, one o 57 NGO observers at WIPO, nearly 19 million Americans are employed inIP-intensive industries, and thereore depend on WIPO-administered IP protection activities.

International Maritime Organization (IMO). The IMO contributes to the U.S. business sector by settingsaety standards or the international shipping industry and guidelines or preventing maritime pollution.Standards promulgated by IMO are central to the U.S. economy because 90 percent o all international

trade is carried on ships. IMO recently completed comprehensive revisions designed to upgrade trainingstandards or seaarers. Such training is critical to preventing losses at sea, and thereby reducing ship-ping costs to U.S. businesses. IMO also addresses security threats to the international shipping industry,including piracy.

International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). ICAO enables sae air travel everywhere by settingglobal standards or navigation, communication, and airline saety. These standards map out airspace

jurisdiction and establish ree range airspace over oceans and seas. This agency also sets internationalstandards or limiting environmental degradation and works to strengthen aviation security by conduct-ing regular audits o aviation security oversight in ICAO member states. ICAO also works to enhance thesecurity o travel documents like passports, developing global standards to ensure the saety and integ-

rity o these documents. By December 2010, 185 ICAO Member States had adopted machine readablepassports (MRPs) that complied with ICAO standards. With concerns over terrorism, drug smuggling, andhuman tracking topping the list o U.S. security priorities, such standards are o critical importance tothe U.S.

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). FAO ghts hunger worldwide and develops global standardsor ood saety and plant health. U.S. armers and consumers alike benet rom FAOs activities in theseareas. Among its recent accomplishments, the FAO spearheaded the successul global campaign to erad-icate rinderpest, a disease that kills livestock and wildlie and represents a serious threat to the livelihoodso armers and ood security around the world. FAO also plays an indispensable role in global shery con-servation eorts, which are important to U.S. consumers, the worlds second largest importer o sheryproducts. In addition, FAO promotes ood security and sustainable agriculture in countries where the U.S.

has vested oreign policy and national security interests, supporting programs that provide alternatives toopium poppy production in Aghanistan and helping reugees return to their arms in South Sudan.

UN Educational, Scientic, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). UNESCO promotes global peaceand security, scientic innovation, and intercultural dialogue through a variety o programs in ve majorareas: education, natural sciences, social and human sciences, culture, and communication and inorma-tion. Among its activities, UNESCO helps protect the lives and property o Americans through its manage-ment o a tsunami early warning system in the Pacic - a system which alerted residents o the West Coastto the possibility o a tsunami in the atermath o Japans March 2011 earthquake. UNESCO also supportsU.S. national security objectives in Iraq and Aghanistan, where the organization is helping Aghans andIraqis prepare or lie ater the exit o U.S. orces. In Aghanistan, UNESCO is acilitating U.S. eorts tocreate a well-trained, capable police orce by providing literacy training to members o the Aghan NationalPolice, 70% o whom are unable to read or write.

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U.S. Dues and Contributions

Funding or the United Nations and its agencies comes rom two sources: assessed and voluntary contribu-tions. Assessed contributions are payments made as part o the obligations that nations undertake when sign-ing treaties. At the UN, assessments on member states provide a reliable source o unding to core UN unctionsthrough the UN regular and peacekeeping budgets, based on each countrys ability to pay. Voluntary contribu-

tions are let to the discretion o each individual member state. These contributions, which make up nearly halo all UN unding, nance most o the world bodys humanitarian relie and development agencies, including theUN Childrens Fund (UNICEF), the World Food Program (WFP), the UN Development Program (UNDP), and theUN Reugee Agency (UNHCR).

The UN Regular Budget

The UN Regular Budget nances the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Councilthe International Court o Justice, and the Secretariat as well as the UNs special political missions, the largest owhich are the UN Assistance Mission in Aghanistan (UNAMA) and the UN Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI)

The current payment structure or UN Regular Budget dues sets maximum (22%) and minimum (.001%) ratesor all nations based on their ability to pay. The U.S. pays the maximum rate and has negotiated several reduc-tions in this rate over time, most notably rom 25% to 22%. The assessment rate is primarily determined bygross national product (GNP), and since the U.S. has one o the highest in the world, its dues assessments arehigher than those o other Member States.

The UN uses assessed contributions to the regular budget to:

Facilitateelections,goodgovernance,andreconstructionactivitiesinAfghanistanandIraq;InvestigatetheassassinationofformerLebanesePrimeMinisterRakHariri;MonitorcompliancewithinternationalsanctionsregimesagainstIranandNorthKorea;Coordinatetechnicalassistancetohelpcountriesaroundtheworldghtterrorism;CreatesystemstoprotecttheintellectualpropertyrightsofAmericanentrepreneurs;

Enablethedeliveryofmailaroundtheworld.

The Peacekeeping Budget

The UNs peacekeeping budget currently nances 15 peacekeeping missions with more than 120,000 militarypolice, and civilian personnel deployed in confict zones throughout the world. The UN unds its peacekeepingbudget with assessments on member states similar to those made or the regular budget, but with greater dis-counts or poorer nations. The resulting unding decit is compensated or by the 5 permanent members (P5oftheSecurityCounciltheU.S.,UnitedKingdom,France,Russia,andChina.Underthisformula,theU.S.isassessed 27% o the UNs peacekeeping budget, though an outdated and arbitrary Congressional mandatecaps U.S. expenditures or peacekeeping at 25%.

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Since each o the P5 nations possess veto powers over Security Council decisions, no new or expandedpeacekeeping missions can advance without U.S. consent. While this unique responsibility or establishing andrenewing missions means the U.S. pays a higher proportion o the bill or peacekeeping activities, the vast ma-

jority o personnel deployed on such missions come rom developing countries such as Pakistan, BangladeshNepal, and Ghana. In addition, the GAO has shown that UN peacekeeping orces are signicantly cheaper thansending in unilateral U.S. orces.

Current Funding Levels or UN Regular and Peacekeeping Budgets

Over the past three years, ater years o accumulating arrears in its UN dues, the U.S. returned to good nanciastanding at the world body by ully unding its regular and peacekeeping budget assessments and paying opast debts. In the coming year, we ask that Congress honor U.S. nancial obligations to the UN and ully undour nations regular and peacekeeping budget dues. Full unding or our assessed dues to the UN ensures thatit can carry out its vital humanitarian, peacekeeping, democracy-building, and development work, all o whichserve core U.S. oreign policy interests. As the U.S. is the UNs largest contributor, Congressional unding short-alls signicantly impact the UNs ability to carry out its operations.

Below is a chart detailing FY 2011 and FY 2012 unding levels, along with the Presidents request or FY 2013

Voluntary Contributions

Voluntary contributions are, as the term implies, payments let to the discretion o individual Member States.These contributions nance most o the United Nations humanitarian relie and development agencies. Theseactivities help advance critical U.S. oreign policy and national security priorities and would be dicult, i notimpossible, or the United States to undertake alone. Voluntary contributions rom UN member states pay to:

PurchaseU.S.agriculturalproductsforfoodassistanceactivities;

Immunizechildrenagainstdeadlydiseaseslikepolioandmeasles;

Furthernuclearenergysafetyandsecurity;

AssistrefugeesincountriesfromAfghanistantoSudan;

TackletheAIDSpandemic.

Account

CIPA

CIO

CIO UN Regular Budget

FY11 Actual

$1.884 billion

$1.578 billion

$516 million

FY12 Estimate

$1.92 billion*

$1.551 billion**

$569 million

FY13 Request

$2.098 billion

$1.57 billion

$568 million

*Thistotalincludes$91,818,000withinthePeacekeepingOperations(PKO)accountdesignatedtopayassessedexpenses

o international peacekeeping activities in Somalia.

**This total includes $101,300,000 designated or CIO provided in the Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) account.

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The Importance o Paying Our Assessed UN Regular Budget Dues

While a substantial portion o the unding provided by the U.S. to the UN each year is voluntary, pay-ing our assessed dues is absolutely critical to the eectiveness and legitimacy o the organization, asthese contributions serve as the primary source o reliable unding or core UN activities. Nowhere is

this more true than the UN Regular Budget, which unds a variety o activities that are critical to theadvancement o U.S. priorities around the world. Unortunately, bills have been introduced in both theHouse and Senate that could have disastrous consequences or programs unded through the UNRegular Budget; undermining key U.S. interests, our standing at the world body, and causing massivenew U.S. arrears to the UN.

While these bills contain a number o provisions that could do serious harm to the U.S.-UN relation-ship, one o the most troubling would require the U.S. to withhold 50% o its dues unless the UNadopts a system o voluntary unding or the regular budget. Converting the UN Regular Budget roman assessed to a voluntary scheme is highly problematic or several reasons:

Such a shit could lead to signicant unding shortalls or a number o UN programs, as

Member States would be given a green light to cherry pick which UN activities they wantto support. While other countries currently pick up the tab or nearly 80% o the UNs totalregular budget, under a voluntary unding scheme the U.S. would likely end up payingmuch more or UN initiatives that are critical to its interests. These include the UN politi-cal missions in Iraq and Aghanistan, which comprise a signicant portion o the regularbudget. This point was made by the Congressionally-mandated Gingrich-Mitchell reporton UN Reorm when it noted that voluntary unding schemes can lead to under-unding orMember-State priorities and added that it cannot replace basic unding o the core unc-tions o the institution.

Allowing UN Member States to pick and choose which regular budget programs they want

to support would strip away the unique international legitimacy enjoyed by the world body.For example, the UN Regular Budget unds a special international tribunal, created by theSecurity Council in 2007, to investigate the assassination o ormer Lebanese Prime Min-ister Rak Hariri. Because all countries currently provide nancial support to the tribunalthrough their regular budget dues, the work o the tribunal enjoys a high level o indepen-dence and international credibility. These advantages would be erased i the tribunal wasunded through voluntary contributions and only countries that wanted a weaker or tougherline on Syria stepped up to und the investigative body.


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UN Strengthening and Reorm

In order to meet the challenges o the 21st century and ensure Member States resources are used ecientlyand eectively, the UN continues to update its operations and management practices. Changes have takenplace in nearly every area o UN operations, rom the management o UN peacekeeping missions, to improvedtransparency, accountability, and nancial reporting mechanisms. Below is a selection o recently completed

and ongoing UN strengthening and reorm eorts.

Increasing Cost Efciency and Transparency

In late December 2011, the General Assembly approved the UNs core budget or 2012-2013, cuttingspending by 5 percent rom the UNs previous two-year budget, and saving American taxpayers ap-proximately $100 million.

The Secretary-General moved the UN rom print to electronic distribution o UN publications, bothincreasing transparency by making the documents more widely accessible, and signicantly reducingprinting costs.

Streamlining the UNs work

The UN continues to implement the Global Field Support Strategy (GFSS), a ve-year project aimed atimproving the eciency and cost-eectiveness o administrative and logistics support to UN peace-keeping and political missions. The GFSS has already delivered more than $62 million in savings dur-ing its rst year alone.

The UNs Delivering as One initiative to streamline the work o all UN unds and programs has provento be eective. An independent evaluation o the programs 8 pilot countries ound that these reormshave made the delivery o humanitarian aid more ecient and encouraged those countries to takenational ownership o their own development programs.

Strengthening Accountability and Oversight

In June 2011, the Executive Boards o the UN Development Program (UNDP), UN Oce o ProjectServices (UNOPS), and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) voted to give the Global Fund to Fight AIDSTuberculosis, and Malaria, and other intergovernmental donors, access to internal audit reports. Theseorganizations also voted to give governments who und their programs the ability to read internal auditreports remotely to urther acilitate access to these documents.

On December 5, 2011, UNDP and the Global Fund signed an agreement setting out terms or coop-eration and inormation-sharing on oversight investigations.

The Secretary-General developed a ramework to make sta and senior managers more accountableor their perormance. In 2011, or the rst time, an internal website was launched compiling key docu-ments, such as program plans, budgets and perormance reports.

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The Oce o Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) which perorms internal audits, inspections, evalu-ations and investigations within the UN System has increased its capacity to handle investigationsprovide internal auditing, and evaluate peacekeeping missions. Under the leadership o current OIOSchie Carman LaPointe, vacancies at the agency have decreased rom 27% to 17%.

Improving Business Practices and Financial Reporting

The UN is replacing its outdated inormation management system with Enterprise Resource Planning(ERP). ERP will streamline the management o operations, resources, and sta; reduce business pro-cesses by over 70 percent; and save Member States hundreds o millions o dollars.

Once implemented, ERP will also enhance internal controls and ensure the UN meets InternationaPublic Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS), which will improve the quality and transparency o nan-cial reporting within the UN.

Recruiting and Maintaining Quality Sta

Sta contracts were recently streamlined, replacing a complex system o multiple contracts and re-ducing ineciencies.

The UN ended the practice o issuing new permanent contracts, ensuring that only the most qualiedpeople remain on sta.

Ensuring Continued Progress on Reorm in 2012 and Beyond

Secretary-GeneralBanKi-moonremainscommittedtoastrongreformagendain2012,promisingtocontinuebuilding upon eorts already in progress to ensure that the UN can meet new demands and deliver vital ser-vices in the most ecient and cost-eective manner. Nevertheless, additional measures are needed to urtherstrengthen the UN, and making sure these reorm eorts are successul requires strong, consistent engagemenby the U.S.

Withholding unding rom the UN budget in order to orce reorm would be more o an obstacle to reorm than

a catalyst to encourage it. This approach alienates our allies, whose support we need to push or additionachanges, and sends a signal that the U.S. is more interested in weakening the UN than making it a more trans-parent and responsive institution.

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Peace and Security Issues

Peacekeeping

TheUNDepartmentofPeacekeepingOperations(DPKO)overseesthesecondlargestdeployedmilitaryforcein the world, with over 120,000 military, police, and civilian personnel rom 114 countries currently serving in15 missions on our continents. The United States provides very ew troops or these operations, and other UN

Member States cover nearly three-quarters o their costs.

The UN Security Council authorizes the deployment o peacekeepers to stabilize some o the worlds mostvolatile confict zones and prevent the collapse o ragile states. UN peacekeeping missions accomplish theseobjectives by, among other things, supporting the implementation o peace agreements, disarming and demo-bilizing ormer combatants, training national police orces, acilitating humanitarian aid to disaster and war-ravaged communities, and promoting political reconciliation and ree and air elections. These activities are a boonto U.S. national security and oreign policy interests, as they help deny potential sae havens to terrorists andcriminals and promote core American values while requiring a relatively small investment o nancial resourcesand personnel rom the U.S.

The importance o UN peacekeeping in promoting Americas broader strategic goals and values is not surpris-ing, given that the U.S. plays a pivotal role in crating and authorizing the mandates o all UN peacekeepingmissions. As a permanent, veto-wielding member o the Security Council, no new or expanded peacekeepingmissions can proceed without U.S. consent. In recognition o the benets o UN peacekeeping, the U.S., underboth Democratic and Republican administrations, has actively supported a nine-old increase in the number opeacekeepers operating around the world since 1999. Over the last year, with strong U.S. support, the SecurityCouncil established two new peacekeeping missions to promote peace and security in the new nation o South

Sudan and along its border with Sudan, and voted to expand ongoing operations in Liberia and Cote dIvoire topromote democracy and ree elections.

Counter-terrorism

Combating terrorism has long been a priority o the United Nations, and various parts o the UN system havehelped Member States counter the threat posed by terrorists. For its part, the Security Council has adopted anumber o resolutions and established several subsidiary bodies to tackle the global challenges posed by trans-national terrorism. Prior to September 11, 2001, the Security Council imposed nancial, travel, and weaponssanctions on al-Qaeda, the Taliban and their supporters, and established a committee to monitor compliancewith these measures. In the wake o the 9/11 attacks, the Security Council adopted Resolution 1373, requiringcountries to criminalize terrorism nancing, cooperate with other governments to arrest and prosecute terror-

[United Nations] peacekeepers help promote stability and help reduce the risks that major U.S

military interventions may be required to restore stability in a country or region. Therefore thesuccess of these operations is very much in our national interest.

Admiral Mike Mullen, ormer Chairman o the Joint Chies o Sta

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ists, and established a Counter-Terrorism Committee to help national governments achieve these goals. Severayears later, the Council adopted Resolution 1540, which mandates that countries take steps to prevent weap-ons o mass destruction rom alling into the hands o terrorists.

In 2006, the UN General Assembly adopted the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, representing the rst timethat all UN Member States had agreed to a common strategic and operational plan to combat terrorism. The

strategy includes practical steps to address the conditions that spread terrorism, strengthen state capacity tocounter terrorist threats, improve coordination among UN bodies involved in ghting terrorism, and saeguardhuman rights and the rule o law. Recent developments in the UNs ongoing eorts to ght terrorism include:

In March 2011, the Secretary-General established a new UN System Task Force on TransnationaOrganized Crime and Drug Tracking. Recognizing the links between narcotics tracking andterrorism, the Task Force will integrate and strengthen the UNs response to illicit drugs and orga-nized crime by building them into all UN peacekeeping, peacebuilding, security, development anddisarmament activities.

In April 2011, the Security Council voted unanimously to extend or another ten years the mandate o

the committee charged with implementing Resolution 1540, which requires states to prevent terroristsrom acquiring nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons. At the time, the U.S. pledged $3 million tothe United Nations to help the 1540 Committee ulll its objectives.

In order to urther the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, the General Assembly and UN specializedagencies are building a worldwide counter-terrorism legal ramework via the adoption o 16 internationatreaties that criminalize nearly every imaginable terrorist oense and acilitate internationalegal cooperation.

Preventing Nuclear Prolieration

The United Nations serves as a key international platorm rom which countries can work together to stem theprolieration o nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons. The UN General Assembly, the Security Council, and

the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) all provide venues or countries to share resources and inorma-tion, create rameworks or addressing breaches o international agreements, and build unied ronts againstroguestateslikeIran,Syria,andNorthKorea.Recentdevelopmentsinongoingeffortstocurbthespreadofnuclear weapons and address the nuclear aspirations o rogue regimes at the UN include:

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) continues to closely monitor Irans nuclear program,playing a pivotal role in global eorts to curb that countrys nuclear aspirations. In November 2011, theIAEA released a report which ound that Iran had carried out activities relevant to the development onuclear weapons. Several weeks later, the agencys 35-nation Board o Governors voted to censureIran by a vote o 32-2. In reerence to the vote, White House National Security Advisor Tom Donilonargued that it signaled the degree o isolation [currently aced by Iran] really is unprecedented.

The IAEA has also sought to ensure that Syria ullls its international non-prolieration commitmentsby calling on Syria to come clean regarding an alleged nuclear acility that was bombed by Israel in2007. In May 2011, the IAEA released a report concluding that the acility was very likely a nascentnuclear reactor. In June, the agencys Board o Governors rebuked Syria and voted 17-6 to reer thereport to the Security Council.

The number o countries participating in the IAEAs Illicit Tracking Database, which provides stateswith inormation on incidents o illicit tracking in nuclear and radioactive materials, rose to 113 as oNovember 30, 2011.


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United Nations on the Ground

Iraq

The UN Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI) is a civilian-led political mission rst established ater the start othe Iraq war in 2003. Tasked with coordinating the activities o various UN programs and agencies in Iraq, UN-

AMI works to promote political dialogue, national reconciliation, and human rights; help resolve dicult interna

boundarydisputesbetweenIraqiandKurdishauthorities;deliverhumanitariananddevelopmentassistancetothe Iraqi people; and acilitate ree and air elections. With the departure o the last U.S. troops rom Iraqi soicompleted in December 2011, UN eorts to create a more peaceul, prosperous, and democratic Iraq havetaken on even greater urgency. Over the past year, the UN has worked to strengthen Iraq in the ollowing ways

Providing Critical Humanitarian Aid. In 2011, the UN Reugee Agency (UNHCR) and its partners co-ordinated the provision o clean water, shelter, and sanitation assistance to nearly 500,000 displacedpersons. The World Food Program (WFP) launched a school eeding initiative to help keep 550,000Iraqi schoolchildren healthy and scaled up a cash-or-work program to provide short-term employ-ment opportunities to Iraqis in regions particularly hard-hit by violence. The UN Educational, Scienticand Cultural Organization (UNESCO) currently manages an educational program to instill civic valuesand lie skills in young Iraqis to help prevent them rom being recruited by extremist groups.

Addressing Disputed Territories. UNAMI continued to acilitate dialogue over disputed internaboundariesbetweentheIraqinationalgovernmentandtheKurdistanregionalgovernmentin ordeto prevent violence and promote reconciliation. UNAMI also brought together the leaders o variousminority religious and ethnic communities and government ocials in northern Iraq to discuss the se-curity needs o these communities and the protection o their legal, political, and cultural rights.

Encouraging Human Rights. In 2011, UNAMI worked closely with the Iraqi government to establishan Independent High Commission or Human Rights to promote and protect the rights o all Iraqis inaccordance with international standards. In coordination with the Iraqi government, UNAMI also ledhuman rights training sessions or government ocials in the Ministries o Interior and Justice, civi

society organizations such as the Iraqi Bar Association, and 200 journalists. Promoting Democracy. Since its inception, UNAMI has played a pivotal role in acilitating six nationa

and provincial elections in Iraq, including the countrys historic 2005 parliamentary elections. The UNMission helped establish and train Iraqs Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC), and the UNcontinues to provide strategic and technical assistance and advice to the Commission. In 2011, IHECasked UNAMI to play an advisory role in the selection o its new Board o Commissioners, in order to

ensure the process remains transparent and merit-based.

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Aghanistan

Following the U.S.-led invasion o Aghanistan in 2001, the UN Security Council established the UN AssistanceMission in Aghanistan (UNAMA), a special political mission, to assist in reconstruction eorts, provide vitalhumanitarian and development assistance, encourage stable and eective governance, and acilitate demo-cratic elections. During an October 2011 hearing on Aghanistan beore the House Committee on Foreign

Aairs, Secretary Clinton stated that UNAMAs activities are essential to the saety and security o our troops,

our civilian employees and the success o the transitionWe partner closely on a literally hour-by-hour basiswith UNAMA. And i we cant depend on UNAMA, well have to pay or or invent some other entity, becausewe dont have another partner that has the credibility or the reach UNAMA has. Over the past year, the UNhas worked to strengthen Aghanistan in the ollowing ways:

Improving Literacy Skills to Empower Aghan Police. In Aghanistan, more than 70% o police o-cers are unable to read or write. This lack o basic literacy skills can lead to misunderstandings andaggravate tensions between the Aghan National Police (ANP) and the population at large, posing achallenge to U.S. nation-building eorts. To remedy this situation, UNESCO launched a program inJune 2011 to provide literacy training or 3,000 members o the ANP. These types o initiatives areindispensable to larger U.S. eorts to build a well-trained, eective security orce or Aghanistan,

and could allow U.S. troops to pull out o the country sooner.

Combating Aghanistans Opium Trade. Aghanistan produces nearly 90% o the worlds opiumsupply, eeding an international narcotics market and posing a serious threat to security in the coun-try. To address these challenges and strengthen the rule o law in Aghanistan, the UN Oce onDrugs and Crime (UNODC) is working to strengthen the countrys Counter Narcotics Police and pro-vincial law enorcement authorities; increase the institutional capacity o the Aghan justice system;and help oversight bodies within the Aghan government improve their ability to ght corruption. Inaddition, UNODC and the UN Development Program (UNDP) provide educational and alternativelivelihood opportunities to opium armers to help them transition to other agricultural commodities.

Curbing Gender-based Violence. UNAMA works with Aghan authorities to support implementation

o the countrys Elimination o Violence Against Women (EVAW) law, enacted in 2009 to criminalizechild marriage, orced marriage, and acts o violence against women. While gender-based violenceremains widespread in Aghanistan and challenges remain to ull enorcement o the law, 28 o A-ghanistans 34 provinces opened cases under the law between March 2010 and March 2011.

Providing Critical Humanitarian Assistance. In addition to building the capacity o the countryssecurity sector and curbing the opium trade, UN agencies provide liesaving aid to millions o A-ghans. In 2011, UNICEF and WHO, working in conjunction with other international and local part-ners, vaccinated 7 million Aghan children against polio. UNHCR assisted in the return, registration,and repatriation o nearly 165,000 reugees. For its part, the World Food Program (WFP) launched avouchers program to help energize local economies and strengthen small armers by enabling poor

Aghans to purchase ood in local markets.

South Sudan

On July 9, 2011, seven months ater a successul reerendum on sel-determination was completed, the Re-public o South Sudan ormally declared independence. In the run-up to that historic declaration and in themonths ollowing, territorial disputes between the Republic o Sudan and its new neighbor erupted into seri-ous outbreaks o violence, with members o the Sudanese Armed Forces carrying out major military opera-tionsinseveralkeyborderregionsAbyei,SouthKordofan,andBlueNile.Asaresultofthisviolence,tensofthousands o reugees have fed these border regions into South Sudan in recent months, joining an alreadysubstantial fow o South Sudanese leaving other areas o the Republic o Sudan or the newly-established

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country. UN humanitarian agencies, particularly UNHCR, continue to provide ood, water, shelter, and otherorms o aid to these vulnerable populations.

In addition to ongoing territorial disputes and challenges posed by recent infuxes o reugees, the worldsnewest country aces a number o other serious dilemmas, including building stable and eective governmentinstitutions to uphold the rule o law and ensure security; curbing inter-ethnic ghting and other types o interna

violence; disarming and reintegrating ormer combatants; and acilitating long-term economic developmentAs a result o these ongoing challenges, the UN Security Council, with strong support rom the U.S., createdtwo new peacekeeping missions or the region in 2011 to consolidate security, promote good governance, andacilitate access to critical humanitarian aid or vulnerable populations.

UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS)

On July 8, 2011, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 1996, establishing a new peace-keeping mission to help consolidate peace and security in South Sudan, strengthen the capacity o its govern-ment, and acilitate development. Authorized or an initial period o one year, the UN Mission in South Sudan(UNMISS) is authorized to consist o up to 7,000 military personnel and 900 police, as well as a civilian compo-nent. Since its establishment, UNMISS has been working to:

Consolidate Peace and Foster Long-term State-Building. UNMISS is advising and supporting e-orts by the South Sudanese government to carry out an inclusive constitutional process, hold elec-tions, and promote womens participation in public lie. UNMISS also supports independent medialike the Jubabased Radio Miraya, to report on ongoing issues across South Sudan.

Prevent Confict and Protect Civilians. Inter-ethnic ghting and attacks by militias remain a seri-ous threat to security in South Sudan, claiming hundreds o lives and leading to the displacement othousands in the South Sudanese state o Jonglei over the past year. UNMISS has a civilian protectionmandate, requiring peacekeepers to deter violence through proactive deployment and patrols in areasat high risk o confict and empowering peacekeepers to protect civilians under imminent threat ophysical violence. To help ulll these responsibilities, large numbers o UN peacekeepers have been

dispatched to Jonglei and pre-positioned in sensitive areas to help South Sudanese authorities deteviolence and promote reconciliation. UNMISS also conducts daily surveillance fights and land patrolsover confict-aected areas in Jonglei to enhance the ability o peacekeepers and local authorities tocurb instability. In January 2012, the Obama Administration announced it would contribute ve U.Smilitary ocers to the peacekeeping mission in order to help with strategic planning and operations.

Strengthen South Sudans Security and Justice Sectors. UNMISS peacekeepers are supportingthe development and implementation o a national strategy or disarming, demobilizing, and reinte-grating ex-combatants; strengthening the nations police services and security sector reorm; devel-oping a military justice system to support the civil justice system; and conducting demining activitiesUNMISS supports government eorts to build eective rule o law and security institutions by provid-

ing technical advice to mobile teams o judges and prosecutors in states with high caseloads.

UN Interim Security Force in Abyei (UNISFA)

The uture political status o the disputed oil-rich region o Abyei, which straddles the border between Sudanand South Sudan, has been a serious source o contention between both sides in recent years. Beginning inlate May 2011, Abyei was the scene o intense clashes and looting ater the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF)launched a major assault on the area, leaving hundreds dead and over 100,000 displaced. Despite eorts inSeptember 2011 between the governments o the Republic o Sudan and South Sudan to withdraw their re-spective orces rom Abyei, the SAF continues to occupy the region.

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To address this crisis, the UN Security Council unanimously voted to establish the UN Interim Security Force inAbyei (UNISFA) in June 2011, a separate UN peacekeeping orce to monitor the region. UNISFA, the creationo which was championed by the U.S., is authorized to include up to 4,200 Ethiopian troops to ensure securityand monitor the withdrawal o armed orces rom both sides in the region. On December 14, 2011, UNISFAsmandate was expanded to include monitoring the border between Sudan and South Sudan and supporting ademilitarized zone in the area. In addition, UNISFA works to provide assistance and technical support to de-

mining eorts, acilitate the delivery o humanitarian aid, and secure reedom o movement or aid workers. Aseorts to deuse the crisis and demilitarize the disputed region progress, peacekeepers will continue to play acritical role.

Horn o Arica

Over the last year, the Horn o Arica has been witness to one o the worlds most severe current humanitariancrises, with the regions worst drought in nearly six decades combined with ongoing violence and instabilityin Somalia causing signicant disruptions to ood supplies and the displacement o hundreds o thousands opeople.Atitsheight,thecrisisleftmorethan13millionpeopleinSomalia,Ethiopia,Kenya,andDjiboutiinneedo emergency ood aid, and caused the total number o Somalis seeking reuge in neighboring countries to soato more than 950,000.

From the outset o the crisis, the UN has played an indispensable role in providing ood, water, medical care,shelter, and other orms o assistance to aected individuals across the region. In spite o the sheer magnitudeo the tragedy and serious logistical and security challenges, the UNs work in the region has had a noticeableimpact. Nevertheless, much o the region remains under a severe humanitarian emergency, with millions stilin need o aid, and the security threat posed by al-Shabaab militants continues to hinder access to much osouthern and central Somalia. Provided below is a summary o actions taken by various UN entities to ease thecrisis in the region and promote peace and stability in Somalia.

The World Food Program (WFP) has delivered liesaving ood aid throughout the region, reaching morethan 7.7 million people aected by drought and amine. The UN Reugee Agency (UNHCR) preparedtemporary shelters and distributed blankets, plastic sheeting, and other basic but essential items to

hundreds o thousands o reugees outside o Somalia and displaced persons within the war-torncountry. Together with the World Health Organization (WHO), the UN Childrens Fund (UNICEF) carriedout a large-scale immunization campaign in Somalia between October and November 2011, vaccinat-ing 600,000 children rom measles and 273,000 rom polio.

The UN Political Oce in Somalia (UNPOS) is working to stabilize the ragmented country by assistingin the re-establishment o security orces and supporting Somalias transitional government. UNPOSwas instrumental in the creation o a political roadmap or Somalia in September, which sets out anumber o key measures to be taken by the transitional government in the areas o security, drating aconstitution, reconciliation, and good governance over the coming months.

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Global Health & Human Rights

Promoting Global Health and Preventing Disease Through Partnerships

The United Nations global health portolio is set, monitored, and implemented as part o a coordinated eortacross a number o UN agencies, unds, and programs, including: the World Health Organization (WHO), theUnited Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the United Nations

Development Program (UNDP), and the Joint UN Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). The UN works in close co-ordination with the U.S. government and private sector organizations to combat diseases such as malaria, HIV/

AIDS, measles and polio.

Malaria

Once the largest killer o children under ve, deaths rom malaria have decreased dramatically due to signicantinvestments rom UN agencies (including UNHCR, UNICEF, UNDP, and WHO), the U.S. government, and privatesector organizations. Nevertheless, a child in Arica still dies every 60 seconds o this preventable and treatabledisease. Prevention methods including long-lasting insecticide treated bed nets and indoor residual sprayinghave long been the standard in cost-eective and ecient mechanisms or protecting amilies. In addition, pre-vention eorts received a boost recently rom the promising results o malaria vaccine clinical trials.

HIV/AIDS

In coordination with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the UN, through UNAIDS, coor-dinates national and regional programs to aid the distribution o medicine and supplies, and supports nationaresponses to the AIDS epidemic in more than 150 countries. At the June 2011 UN High-Level Meeting, globaleaders agreed upon new targets to speed the advance o the global AIDS response. As a result o the meetingthere is now a Global Plan towards eliminating new HIV inections among children by 2015.

Polio and Measles

The Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) is a public-private partnership spearheaded by WHO, UNICEFthe U.S. government, and NGOs. GPEI has led the eort to eradicate polio and helped reduce the numbero nations with endemic polio to an all-time low o our. Since the Initiatives inception in 1988, the number opolio cases has dropped by 99 percent. In January 2012, the protracted struggle to eradicate polio achievedan important victory when India reported that it had seen no new cases o the disease in more than one year.

A similar public-private partnership is the Measles Initiative, whose goal is to prevent childhood deaths dueto measles. In just 10 years, the Measles Initiative has helped reduce measles deaths by 78 percent globallyand by 92 percent in Arica. Working closely with national governments and local communities in more than 60countries, the Measles Initiative recently celebrated a major milestone in 2012, with the vaccination o its onebillionth child.

Championing Women and Girls

UN agencies are involved in a wide variety o eorts to help improve the status o women and girls around theworld. Since its launch in 2010, the UNs Global Strategy or Womens and Childrens Health has raised $40 bil-lion to reduce child mortality and improve maternal health. In order to eectively address the health challenges

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aced by women and children, the Global Strategy is driven by the actions o UN agencies, national govern-ments, the private sector, and civil society alike to achieve Millennium Development Goals 4, 5, and 6. In addi-tion, the ollowing UN agencies are working to promote the equality o women and womens health:

UN Women: UN Women is the consolidation o our UN oces ocused on women into a single bodywhich has enhanced nancial eciency, reduced overlap, and improved policy coherence. As an

Under-Secretary-General, the head o UN Women reports directly to the Secretary-General, givingwomens issues greater prominence within the UN system.

UN Population Fund (UNFPA): UNFPA is the largest international source o unding or population andreproductive health programs in the world. UNFPA helps women, men, and young people plan theiamilies, including the number, timing, and spacing o their children, go through pregnancy and child-birth saely, and avoid sexually transmitted inections. UNFPA also combats violence against womenand promotes womens equality. UNFPA does not provide, support, or advocate or abortion, nor doesit support, promote, or condone coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization.

The Millennium Development Goals: Looking Forward to 2015 and Beyond

In 2000, all UN Member States committed to eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which aim to sig-

nicantly reduce extreme poverty and disease, ensure environmental sustainability, and enhance internationacoordination around development by 2015. The MDGs are the rst and only international ramework or improv-ing the human condition o the worlds poor.

The Eight Millennium Development Goals include:

Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

Achieve universal primary education

Promote gender equality and empower women

Reduce child mortality

In September 2010, over 140 heads o state convened in New York or the 10-year Review Summit on theMDGs. They met to highlight advances toward the goals to date and demonstrate a renewed commitment toachieving them by 2015. In addition to celebrating tremendous progress made in East Asian countries, manyo which are set to achieve most, i not all o the goals by 2015, the Summit participants also committed toredoublingtheireffortsonsub-SaharanAfrica.UNSecretary-GeneralBanKi-moonalsousedthe2010Summit

to launch his Global Strategy on Womens and Childrens Health.

Globally, signicant progress has been made in eorts to achieve the MDGs over the last decade. The world asa whole continues to make important strides in poverty reduction, and we are on track to surpass the currenttarget o reducing the poverty rate by one-hal by 2015. Moreover, a number o countries in sub-Saharan Aricahave made notable progress in increasing access to primary education, and the global childhood mortality ratehas declined precipitously in recent years due to ongoing eorts to control measles, malaria, and HIV.

In spite o these achievements however, much o the world, particularly sub-Saharan Arica, has a long way togo towards achieving the MDGs, and Secretary-General Ban is working with world leaders to accelerate eorts

Improve maternal health

Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases

Ensure environmental sustainability

Develop a global partnership for development

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to meet these goals by the 2015 deadline. In addition, the UN is already beginning to engage in conversationsregarding the creation o a post-2015 development agenda to build on the development progress made by theMDGs. As the international community ramps up its eorts ahead o 2015 and begins to sketch the contours oa post-MDG landscape, the sustained engagement o the U.S. will be critical towards ensuring the continuedadvancement o core development goalsrom gender equality to increasing access to basic health services.

Human Rights CouncilThe UN Human Rights Council was rst established in 2006 to replace an earlier human rights body which hadbeen criticized as ineective, politicized, and biased against Israel. Initially, the U.S. declined to run or a seaton the Council, and during its rst several years, the new 47-member human rights body struggled to ulll itsmandate to promote and protect internationally recognized human rights. In 2009, however, the U.S. changedcourse and successully ran or a seat on the Council. Since then, U.S. membership has produced tangiblepositive outcomes on a number o ronts, making the institution a more eective advocate or human rights andproducing progress on a number o key U.S. policy objectives.

The Council is bringing international attention to some o the worlds most egregious human rightsabusers and creating new mechanisms to spotlight and address serious human rights concerns. In

2011, the Council held special sessions on Syria and Libya, establishing Commissions o Inquiry toinvestigate gross and systematic violations o human rights in both countries, as well as a speciarapporteur or longer term monitoring o the situation in Syria. In March 2011, the U.S. helped lead aneort to create the Councils rst new country-specic special rapporteur on the human rights situa-tion in Iran.

By promoting strong cross-regional dialogue, U.S. diplomats are using the Council to advance univer

sal values. In June 2011, the Council took bold action to highlight violence and discrimination acedby lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered (LGBT) persons around the world, making it the rst UNresolution to recognize that LGBT rights are human rights. The Council also adopted a resolution oncombating discrimination and violence based on religion. This replaced an earlier proposal, put orthby members o the Organization o the Islamic Conerence, which sought to ban religious deamation

and proposed dangerous limitations on ree speech.

With U.S. leadership, the Council initiated a new eort to ocus on country-specic resolutions, en-couraging countries in transition to uphold their human rights obligations. Since the U.S. joined thebody, countries that have been added to the Councils agenda include Cte dIvoire, Guinea, Hondu-ras,Kyrgyzstan,Libya,SouthSudan,Tunisia,andYemen.

In October 2011, the Council completed the rst cycle o the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) processa peer review o the human rights records o all UN member states. For the rst time, all countrieswere reviewed on an equal basis with the participation o governments as well as local, regional, andinternational NGOs. The UPR process also provides the U.S. with another global platorm to publiclycondemnandpushforactionongravehumanrightsviolationsinCuba,Iran,NorthKorea,andothecountries.

While the continuation o the Councils special agenda item on Israel remains a serious concern, disengag-ing rom the Council will not lead to better results. Disengagement will only risk a roll-back o the signicantprogress, documented above, which the U.S. made in 2011, and will guarantee that other serious human rightssituations around the world that need eective champions go unaddressed. Moreover, pulling out o the Councior leaving it ununded would likely hurt Israel, as the number o resolutions and sessions ocused on Israel hasdropped sharply since 2009.

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International Agreements

The United Nations provides a platorm or nations to work together to establish international norms, standardsand agreements in the common interest o all nations. In recent decades, the UN has acilitated negotiation ocritical international treaties on issues ranging rom trade and commerce to the environment and human rightsWhile, historically, the United States has played a leading role in ostering the development o international law

the U.S. has thus ar ailed to ratiy several important international conventions negotiated under the auspiceso the UN, including: the UN Convention on the Law o the Sea, the Convention on the Elimination o All Formso Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), the Convention on the Rights o the Child, and the ComprehensiveNuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.

Provided below is a list o recent developments on an array o important international agreements establishedunder the auspices o the UN.

In September 2011, Under Secretary o State or Arms Control Ellen Tauscher stated that one o theAdministrations highest priorities is the ratication and entry into orce o the Comprehensive Nucle-ar-Test-Ban Treaty. In addition, in late August 2011, the U.S. made an $8.9 million voluntary contribu-tion to accelerate development o the treatys verication regime.

In July 2011, in honor o the 21st anniversary o enactment o the Americans with Disabilities ActPresident Obama issued a proclamation reiterating the U.S.s commitment to ratiy the UN Conventionon the Rights o Persons with Disabilities, which it signed in 2009.

In response to increasing assertiveness by China in regards to its territorial claims in the South ChinaSea, a major conduit or international trade, Secretary o State Clinton stated in November that theU.S. wanted the UN Convention on the Law o the Sea to be used as the overriding rameworkor handling territorial disputes between China and its neighbors. Earlier in the year, Admiral GaryRoughead, Chie o Naval Operations, stated in testimony beore the House Armed Services Commit-tee that it is essential that the United States become a ull party to the Law o the Sea Treaty.

In a March 2010 report to the UN Human Rights Council, the State Department reiterated its supporor CEDAW and the Convention on the Rights o the Child, and stated that the Administration intendedto review how they could move orward on ratication.


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The Better World Campaign (BWC), an initiative o the Better World Fund,

works to strengthen the relationship between the United States and the

United Nations through outreach, communications, and advocacy. It

encourages U.S. leadership to enhance the UNs ability to carry out its

invaluable international work on behal o peace, progress, reedom, and

justice. In these eorts, BWC engages policymakers, the media, and the

American public to increase awareness o and support or the United

Nations. For more inormation, visit www.BetterWorldCampaign.org.

The United Nations Association o the United States o America (UNA-

USA), a program o the UN Foundation, is a membership organizationdedicated to inorm, inspire and mobilize the American people to support

the principles and vital work o the United Nations. UNA-USA works to

accomplish its mission through its national network o chapters,

advocacy eorts, education programs, and public events. UNA-USA

and BWC are the single largest network o advocates and supporters

o the United Nations in the world. For more inormation,

visit www.unausa.org.

1800 Massachusetts Avenue, NW Suite 400, Washington, D.C. 20036

Phone: (202) 462-4900 Fax: (202) 462-2686

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