Hello from Global Policy Forum,
The Kosovo crisis continues, with its steady ration of cruelty and violence. At GPF we have had a number of valuable private meetings and briefings with delegates at UN headquarters, which have confirmed that (1)the United States government has done everything possible to prevent this crisis from being dealt with in the framework of the UN, (2)a negotiated settlement was possible, prior to the bombing, but the United States insisted on bypassing UN peacekeeping and using a NATO force, which was unacceptable to the Serbian side, (3)the overwhelming majority of governments in the world want to see a UN-sponsored settlement, (4)on the Security Council, also, a substantial majority favors an end to the bombing and a negotiated settlement.
The leaders of NATO gathered this weekend to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their organization and proclaim its future significance. At GPF we are inclined to think that NATO should have gone the way of the Warsaw Pact. Instead, we are sorry to see the organization substituting itself for the United Nations and claiming the role of global judge and global policeman. For those readers who would like to consider NATO's justifications for its air war in Yugoslavia, we have posted this week a link to a Press Conference on Kosovo at NATO Headquarters in Brussels on April 13. Numerous maps and photos accompany spokesman Jamie Shea and General Wesley Clark's presentation. We also link to a text of the Rambouillet proposal: "Interim Agreement for Peace and Self-Government in Kosovo," a pact crafted in Washington, that was not the result of negotiation between the parties, and not a pathway towards a peaceful settlement.
Other postings this week contribute to an analysis of the Kosovo crisis. We draw your attention in particular to a piece by our friend, Diana Johnstone, who knows European politics better than anyone else we know. Her "Notes on the Kosovo Problem and the International Community" - provides invaluable background on Yugoslavia.
The Mother Jones magazine article - "Clinton's Other War" - reminds us that a second war continues in Iraq. Within this feature are many links to the news articles discussed, Security Council resolutions on Iraq and other web sites covering the situation there.
On the home front, Mark Malloch Brown, notorious spin-doctor for the World Bank (his title there is "Vice President for External Affairs"), has just been appointed head of the United Nations Development Programme, replacing James Gustave Speth. Secretary-General Kofi Annan vetoed the European nominee, Poul Nielson of Denmark, and named Brown instead. A UK citizen, Brown is being touted as a European candidate. But according to reliable sources, his name was put forward by the United States, with the connivance of the UK and Germany. The Secretary General is now running for a second term and apparently hopes to keep Washington happy. But this move is a further step towards imposing neoliberal orthodoxy on the United Nations -- ironically, just when neoliberalism is discredited and an alternative voice is needed more than ever.
This week at last we have brought you the article on the G8 finance ministers' agreement to drop their opposition to an air fuel tax --a promising first step towards worldwide green taxes. Movements advocating a Tobin Tax on currency exchange have likewise been gaining strength from the recent Canadian parliamentary motion (see "Tobin Tax Movements Internationally")
On Wednesday, GPF Director Jim Paul attended an International Peace Academy high-level event on the topic of sanctions. Ambassador Fowler, the Chairman of the Angola sanctions committee of the Security Council, hosted this event at the Canadian Mission. George Lopez, of Notre Dame, led off with a paper. There followed a very interesting conversation among a number of delegates, including Peter van Walsum, Ambassador of the Netherlands, Chairman of the Iraq Sanctions Committee. Interest in better and more targeted sanctions is as keen as ever.
On Friday, April 30, there will be another informal consultation between the Ad Hoc Working Group of the General Assembly on Financing for Development (FfD) and NGOs. This informal consultation is an excellent opportunity for the NGO community to comment on the great economic issues of global financial policy and architecture. We urge NGO friends to take advantage of this opportunity.
Last week, the GPF office took an important step forward in its local computer systems, as a way to speed our work, particularly our work on the web site. We acquired a new 450 mhz network server and a new network hub operating at 100 megabytes per second. Our thanks to Holger Osterrieder for installing this new system and getting it running smoothly.
Also last week we had a number of staff discussions evaluating our web site and considering ways to improve it. The traffic on the site has been encouraging -- 94,000 hits in the last two weeks, setting a new GPF record. We are pleased that so many people are using the site. As part of our planned improvements, we are this week instituting a new "What's New" format which you'll find in our listings below. Of course, we always are grateful for feedback.
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