UN Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer appeared on an episode of The Brink, hosted by Jake Wallis Simons and Andrew Fox, to examine the role of the United Nations during the escalating crisis in Iran and to discuss how the U.N. has strayed so far away from it founding principles.
Conversation Highlights:
Andrew Fox: Let’s start with the ongoing war in Iran. What role is the U.N. playing here? What’s the mood music that’s coming out of the U.N.?
Hillel Neuer: I’m seeing a disgraceful reaction by the U.N. to what’s going on. Let’s keep in mind that since mass protests began in the end of December several months ago, the U.N. was mostly silent, mostly indifferent to protesters being gunned down to the tune of tens of thousands in just two days. There were muted responses and they basically did nothing to stop massacre of protesters.
This same body this week has sprung into action immediately condemning the U.S. and Israel for answering the call of the millions of Iranian protesters who said: “Save us. Do anything you can to stop the mass murder.” And when the military action finally came, the U.N., which did nothing to help them, is condemning the help that the Iranians asked for. Never in the history of the U.N. have we seen such a betrayal and contempt shown for the U.N.’s own founding values.
Jake Wallis Simons: In the U.N. right now, what’s going on with the Iranian officials? Is it business as usual? Are they still sitting in the same chairs, doing the same jobs?
Hillel Neuer: It’s business as usual. They’re being invited and participating in all the same U.N. debates. I’ve been documenting in the past few weeks alone, the Islamic regime in Iran got elected Vice-Chair to two different bodies, took a seat on the Human Rights Council Advisory Committee, and their deputy foreign minister spoke at the Human Rights Council. The U.N. is betraying its values.
But some things are different. Right now there’s a session ongoing at the Human Rights Council in Geneva. And for a change, you have countries like Bahrain, UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar condemning Iran for aggression. That’s something you didn’t normally see before. It’s rare to see these countries condemning Iran.
Jake Wallis Simons: How did we get to this deplorable situation with the U.N.?
Hillel Neuer: It’s been a long process and certainly I would say it began in the 1960s with decolonization where you had large majority of countries joining the U.N. who were not democracies, but dictatorships. And the Soviet Union at the time very clever in manipulating them to built the so-called Non-Aligned Movement, which was really in many cases an anti-Western movement. From there, dictatorships like Cuba, Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran began taking over U.N. bodies.
There’s also a role of the U.N. Secretariat, that being the employees. I think that over time, anyone who was decent was kind of pushed out of the system. Over time a culture was created for the employees interpreting and implementing the resolutions, that if you do have an approach that is not anti-Western, and not anti-Israel, then you’re kind of made to feel unwanted. You’re either pushed out, excluded, or you get the message that this won’t be a comfortable job for you.
