On
Mali, French
Deadline
May Shift to
Friday, US
Bilaterals,
Experts to
Meet
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
December 18,
updated -- On
Monday
France's
Ambassador
Gerard Araud
told Inner
City Press, on
Mali, we are
voting
Thursday. But
other
diplomats told
Inner City
Press no final
draft
resolution had
been
circulated,
and the vote
might well be
Friday.
On
Tuesday Inner
City Press
asked Araud,
have you
circulated the
final
draft? He said
there have
been meetings
at the expert
level, and of
another round
of Tuesday
afternoon.
An
African Union
source
excluislvely
told Inner
City Press,
"They are
still working
things out
with the US...
The Americans
approached us
bilaterally
and said,
don't worry,
we're fine
with the
support
package"
funding.
But,
the source
continued,
"That's not
the position
the US is
taking
here at the
UN."
Another
well
placed source
told Inner
City Press of
an "Algerian
element" being
proposed for
the draft
resolution,
and of French
opposition.
A
bemused or
disgusted
Security
Council source
told Inner
City Press,
"These guys
care more
about
finishing in
time for their
vacations than
about the
substance."
But that does
not appear to
be true for
all of them.
Update
of 11:50 am
-Inner City
Press asked US
Ambassador
Susan Rice
about the
resolution. "It's
being
negotiated,"
she replied.
Inner City
Press asked,
vote this
week, Friday?
Ambassador
Rice, said,
"If
it's ready."
Back
on December
12, Inner City
Press asked US
Ambassador
Susan Rice
about
Mali:
Inner
City Press:
One quick
question on
Mali. This
resignation,
or forced
resignation,
of the Prime
Minister that
took place
earlier this
week
-- does it
change the
U.S.'s
thinking at
all on how the
Council
should proceed
in terms of
authorizing a
force to
reclaim
Northern
Mali?
Ambassador
Rice:
Well, as you,
Mali has been
and remains a
very complex
situation and
from the
United States'
point of view
we have
multiple
parallel
interests and
objectives,
one of which,
is the
swiftest
possible
restoration of
democratic
government in
Bamako. And
indeed,
what has
transpired
over the last
few days is
yet another
setback in
that regard.
But we also
are very much
committed to
collective
effort, to
ensure that
there is not
an enduring
safe haven for
terrorists in
the north of
Mali. And the
Security
Council
resolution
that is under
discussion is
yet another in
a progression
of potential
actions and
some obviously
prior actions
that we are
working on to
address, in
particular,
the challenge
of restoring
sovereignty
and
territorial
integrity and
ridding
terrorists
from the north
of Mali.
So we’ll
continue to
work with that
interest at
heart.
Watch
this site.
, 
