Samantha Power

Russia’s Powerful Perch at the UN Is Crumbling

• May 16, 2022

In October, the United States and Russia will square off in a high-stakes election to decide who will be the next secretary-general of the United Nations’ International Telecommunication Union (ITU) — helping to determine the future of Internet communications for five billion users worldwide. The Geneva-based ITU develops standards and practices that make possible …

Peace and Security, Security Council

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THIS WEEK @UN

Trending UN News: Week Ending April 1

Damilola Banjo

• April 1, 2022

This week, the spotlight remains on the desperate plight of millions of people around the world. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues before the organization. This week, we bring you an analysis of President Putin’s mind-set, a look at Canada’s provocative envoy at the UN and the announcement of a …

Peace and Security, Secretary-General, Security Council, This Week @UN

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WORLDVIEWS

Biden’s First Year at the United Nations

Stephen Schlesinger

• January 25, 2022

President Joe Biden has brought back an era of diplomatic normalcy to the United Nations in his first year in office. After the often-raucous and unpredictable four years of the Trump administration’s relations with the UN, Biden and his administration have re-embraced the organization in a concerted and measured — albeit, low-key — way. …

Security Council, US-UN Relations, WORLDVIEWS

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THIS WEEK @UN

Further Souring of Ethiopian-UN Relations; Deep-Sea Mining Dangers; Polish-Belarusian Standoff

Anna Bianca Roach

• November 12, 2021

PassBlue probes the global body granting licenses to mine the deep seas; UN staff detained in Ethiopia; global famine rises. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues facing the organization. The information is gathered from UN press briefings, PassBlue reporting and other sources. This week, Mexico’s president proposes a plan …

Africa, Asia, Climate Change, Human Rights, Humanitarian Aid, Middle East, Migration, Myanmar, Refugees, Secretary-General, Security Council, This Week @UN, US Foreign Relations, US-UN Relations

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Venezuela’s Maduro Fires Up UNGA, While a Fight for Afghan Women’s Rights Has Big-Name Backing

Maurizio Guerrero

• September 22, 2021

The second day of world leaders’ speeches delivered at the United Nations General Assembly continued on Sept. 22, after the heavily reported appearance of United States President Joe Biden at the fabled rostrum in the Assembly Hall; a last-minute video presentation by China’s Xi Jinping; and a video by Iran’s new president, Ebrahim Raisi, …

Asia, Gender Violence, General Assembly, Human Rights, UNGA76, US-UN Relations

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A Highly Respected UN Legacy to Fight Corruption Crumbles in Guatemala

Maurizio Guerrero

• August 25, 2021

When Guatemala’s Attorney General Consuelo Porras recently removed the anticorruption leader Juan Francisco Sandoval from his post as the special prosecutor against impunity, her action ended the last semblance of prosecutorial independence generated by one of the most successful projects run by the United Nations: the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala, or Cicig. …

Humanitarian Aid, Latin America, Migration, Secretary-General, US-UN Relations

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WORLDVIEWS

Unicef’s Next Boss Should Be an Internationalist and a Development Pro

Ellen Tolmie

• August 9, 2021

Jockeying for Unicef’s next executive director is well underway, after the July 13 announcement by its current head, Henrietta Fore, that she is leaving before the year’s end. She is going because of a family health emergency and well before her five-year term, which began January 2018, is up. Fore is Unicef’s seventh executive …

UN Agencies, WORLDVIEWS

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THIS WEEK @UN

UN Attacked in Afghanistan; Myanmar’s Envoy Seat Contested; Canada’s Big Step for an Inuit

Ivana Ramirez

• July 30, 2021

A deadly assault on the United Nations’ mission in Afghanistan; Myanmar’s junta seeks the UN envoy seat; the World Meteorological Organization’s troubles; Canada’s big step for Inuits. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues facing the organization. The information is gathered from UN press briefings, PassBlue reporting and other sources. …

General Assembly, Humanitarian Aid, Secretary-General, This Week @UN, US-UN Relations

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UN Human-Rights Experts Raise Alarm Over the Fate of a Russian Ex-Guantánamo Detainee

Clair MacDougall

• July 20, 2021

Yusuf Mingazov met his father, Ravil, for the first time through a videocall between a Red Cross office in Nottingham, Britain, and the Guantánamo Bay detention camp in Cuba, where he had been imprisoned for more than 14 years. “It was kind of difficult to explain the emotions and everything, but it was nice …

Human Rights, Terrorism, US-UN Relations

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TOPIC: WOMEN

A Surprising Leg Up for Women in War-Torn South Sudan: On the Soccer Field

Ivana Ramirez

• July 12, 2021

In times of extreme adversity, hope and light can come from unexpected places. In South Sudan — haunted by a war for independence, followed by a civil war and continued unrest in its short history — people can point to one major victory: a first-time women’s soccer league. Started just this year, it is …

Africa, Child Soldiers, Gender Violence, Poverty, Women

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THIS WEEK @UN

China in the Hot Seat; Goodbye Multilateralism?; Guterres’s Vision for 5 More Years

Ivana Ramirez

• May 7, 2021

China in the United Nations’ hot seat; Guterres’s vision for another five years; the future of global cooperation; who was Anne Dragon Nezeriotis? You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues facing the organization. The information is gathered from UN press briefings, PassBlue reporting and other sources. Our latest UN-Scripted podcast episode …

General Assembly, Latin America, Myanmar, Secretary-General, Security Council, This Week @UN, US-UN Relations

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THIS WEEK @UN

Anti-Asian Threats; Troubles in the UN Humanitarian Aid Agency?; Yes, the UN Still Matters

Ivana Ramirez

• March 26, 2021

Anti-Asian violence; the closing window for a woman secretary-general; a UN expert threatened by Saudi Arabia; the UN’s humanitarian-aid agency cries out for changes. You are reading This Week @UN, summarizing the most pressing issues facing the organization. The information is gathered from UN press briefings, PassBlue reporting and other sources. Barbara Crossette, who …

Development, Gender Violence, Health and Population, Human Rights, SDGs, This Week @UN, UN Special Envoys, US-UN Relations

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THIS WEEK @UN

6 African Peacekeepers Killed; UN Chief Pursues a Second Term; US Sanctions Houthis in Yemen

Ivana Ramirez

• January 15, 2021

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres pursues a second term; a total of six peacekeepers were killed in Mali and the Central African Republic; Britain helps raise $1 billion for the UN’s Covax vaccine program. You are reading This Week @UN, a summary of the most pressing issues facing the organization. The information is gathered …

Africa, General Assembly, Human Rights, Secretary-General, Security Council, This Week @UN, US-UN Relations

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China and Russia Win Human Rights Council Seats, but the Saudis Get Rejected

Dulcie Leimbach

• October 13, 2020

Nearly two and a half years after the United States withdrew from the Human Rights Council, China and Russia have just won elected seats in the body. Both countries suffer from human-rights abuses against their own populations. China and Russia join 13 others as Council members for three-year terms starting on Jan. 1, 2021, …

Human Rights, US-UN Relations

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THIS WEEK @UN

Climate Change Risks, Israel-Palestine Covid-19 Crisis, UN’s Partial Reopening

Allison Lecce

• July 24, 2020

The Security Council held a climate change and security debate, led by Germany, nearly 10 years since the first and last time the Council met on this specific issue and agreed to a presidential statement on it. The Dominican Republic also led a meeting on climate change in January 2019. Although no resolution was …

Climate Change, This Week @UN, US-UN Relations

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Russia’s Powerful Perch at the UN Is Crumbling

Dawn Clancy

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Samantha Power

Russia’s Powerful Perch at the UN Is Crumbling

Trending UN News: Week Ending April 1

Biden’s First Year at the United Nations

Further Souring of Ethiopian-UN Relations; Deep-Sea Mining Dangers; Polish-Belarusian Standoff

Venezuela’s Maduro Fires Up UNGA, While a Fight for Afghan Women’s Rights Has Big-Name Backing

A Highly Respected UN Legacy to Fight Corruption Crumbles in Guatemala

Unicef’s Next Boss Should Be an Internationalist and a Development Pro

UN Attacked in Afghanistan; Myanmar’s Envoy Seat Contested; Canada’s Big Step for an Inuit

UN Human-Rights Experts Raise Alarm Over the Fate of a Russian Ex-Guantánamo Detainee

A Surprising Leg Up for Women in War-Torn South Sudan: On the Soccer Field

China in the Hot Seat; Goodbye Multilateralism?; Guterres’s Vision for 5 More Years

Anti-Asian Threats; Troubles in the UN Humanitarian Aid Agency?; Yes, the UN Still Matters

6 African Peacekeepers Killed; UN Chief Pursues a Second Term; US Sanctions Houthis in Yemen

China and Russia Win Human Rights Council Seats, but the Saudis Get Rejected

Climate Change Risks, Israel-Palestine Covid-19 Crisis, UN’s Partial Reopening

This Week's Most Popular

A Blogger Exposed a UN Agency’s Wrongdoings. Its Boss Has Resigned

Russia Has Used Its UN Seat to Hide Atrocities Committed in the Central African Republic, Experts Say

US Tells Russia: Stop Weaponizing Food in Your War on Ukraine

To Stalin, Ukraine Was an Independent Country

UN-Scripted, Passblue's UN podcast series

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