Monitoring Policy Making at the United Nations |
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January 15-19, 2001 - Global Policy Forum - Email 'Listserv' News
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January 15-19, 2001Greetings from GPF!
Weapons Makers at the UN
Last Friday, January 12, we noticed outgoing US Ambassador Richard Holbrooke giving a luncheon speech on "US-UN Relations" to an attentive audience in the Delegates' Dining Room at the UN. Apart from a scattering of ambassadors, most of his listeners were participants in a national conference of the World Affairs Councils of America (WACA). WACA has 80 chapters and a national membership of 383,000. It says it works at "enhancing international understanding" and "connecting Americans to the world." So we were interested to note that directly behind the ambassador, a large sign read "Our Thanks to Northrop Grumman" (apparently a sponsor of the event). Northrop Grumman is one of the world's largest weapons manufacturers.
Later on, we looked for WACA on the web www.worldaffairscouncils.org and discovered that the site was also "generously sponsored" by Northrup Grumman. The weapon-maker's corporate logo is displayed prominently on the WACA home page. A click and we were transported to Northrup Grumman's own site, where warplanes streaked menacingly and eerie electronic devices peered at unknown enemies.
We learned that Northrup Grumman manufactures the B-2 "Sprint" stealth bomber, the E-2C "Hawkeye" naval radar plane, the FA-18 "Hornet" naval fighter, the AEGIS naval combat system, the AH-64D "Apache" attack helicopter, the Longbow "Hellfire" missile, fire control radar for the F-16 fighter, Norden anti-submarine warfare systems and the BAT "Brilliant" anti-armor sub-munition. The company also builds the F-5 fighter, a low-tech staple for export to poor countries.
We wondered whether WACA members considered anything out of the ordinary about the alliance with this warrior company. Among the wide-ranging events at the conference -- on human rights, poverty, UN reform and global warming -- not a single discussion (unsurprisingly) was devoted to disarmament.
Last-Minute Lobby Continues in Effort to Lift Arms Embargo on Ethiopia
While the Northup Grumman luncheon was taking place, the US Mission continued its intense campaign of pressure on members of the Security Council to lift the arms embargo on war-torn Ethiopia-Eritrea. Apparently, the US wants famine-ridden and war-weary Ethiopia to buy more weapons. According to well-informed sources, new weapons shipments would be likely to destabilize the shaky peace agreement between the two neighboring countries and lead to further killing. It is not clear whether US arms exports are part of the deal.
We wonder why Holbrooke and his staff have been rushing to complete this peculiar transaction before the Bush administration takes office. Around the UN, even hardened diplomats shake their heads at this move - a sordid finale for the ambassador's highly touted "pro-Africa" policy.
Washington Cedes to Wall Street Pressure on Money Laundering Controls
Meanwhile in Washington, on January 16, the outgoing administration issued long-awaited rules to address recent scandals over US banks' handling of illicit funds. According to a sternly worded New York Times editorial on December 22, "profits from prostitution, extortion, smuggled immigrants and arms trafficking can still be laundered through an American bank with no consequence to either the bank or the depositor. Corrupt dictators and their business partners can still legally deposit their loot in American financial institutions." We would add that US institutions foster corruption and criminality in the same manner as the financial houses of Monaco, Liechtenstein, Switzerland or the Cayman Islands - but on a much greater scale. The Times estimates that worldwide money laundering amounts to some $600 billion per year, 5 percent of world GNP. Le Monde Diplomatique thinks the total is higher -- well over $1 trillion. It is a very lucrative business, indeed, and the banks don't want to part with it.
Washington approached the subject with great fanfare, including Congressional hearings and a multi-agency task force. But in the end, the New York money-center banks succeeded in blunting the new oversight proposals. Instead of binding regulations, as favored by law enforcement and Treasury Department experts, the administration issued only weak "voluntary guidelines." The banks had claimed that a regulatory approach would be "too costly" for them to administer.
In a righteous statement as the guidelines were issued, outgoing Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers opined that ``foreign official corruption undermines U.S. efforts to promote democratic institutions and economic development around the world.'' If the Treasury Department indeed has such concerns, we propose that it open a criminal investigation into those responsible for the multi-billion dollar IMF loans to Russia that found their way so swiftly into private overseas accounts. Former World Bank Chief Economist Joseph Stiglitz, among others, has suggested that leaders in Washington knew about this giant heist and that persons in high office were to some extent complicit. Shouldn't someone be held accountable for abetting this theft-of-the-century?
Now the new links for this week…..
