UNITED
NATIONS, March
28 -- The Arms
Trade Treaty
talks were to
have
concluded this
afternoon;
chairman Peter
Woolcott has
scheduled a
press stakeout
at 6 pm.
But
as delegates
continued
milling around
in Conference
Room 1, Inner
City Press
observed the
UN Television
stakeout being
taken apart at
6:10 pm.
By
6:45 pm, Iran,
North Korea
and Syria had
formally
objected,
blocking
consensus.
Mexico and
some others
argued that the
ATT
could still be
adopted --
without a vote
-- since there
is no
definition of
consensus.
But
Syria cited a
definition,
from the World
Health
Organization
in 1987.
Russia echoed
that. Iran
went further,
saying that
those trying
to
change the
rules should
“leave the
building.”
Iran
had earlier
spoken up with
sample
objections;
sources told
Inner City
Press their
main issue was
the inclusion
of a reference
to UN
Security
Council
Chapter 7
sanctions,
which they are
under.
North
Korea, too, is
under them. So
is Sudan, but
several
sources told
Inner City
Press Sudan
does not want
to stand
alone, or
even, as a
source put it
“be seen as
one of the
rogues.”
But
there are
principles,
and the
proponents of
the ATT if
they wanted
consensus
might have
paid more
attention to
them.
As
delegates
milled around
on the first
floor, Inner
City Press
nearly
alone staked
out the second
floor protocol
room NLB-2109.
Iran's
Permanent
Representative
came out with
his Syrian
counter-part
Bashar
Ja'afari. Soon
thereafter,
the objections
were made,
then the
attempts to
re-define
consensus.
Only at the
UN. Watch this
site.
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