At
UN, Spain Calls Push for Top Women's Post Delicate, Ghana on Oil but
not Nigeria
By
Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS, February 3 -- Ghana and Spain sent officials to brief a
total of three journalists about the two week meeting of the 46
members of the Commission on Social Development. Inner City Press
asked Ghana's Ambassador Leslie Kojo Christian how his country
intends to distribute its new found oil wealthy. Fairly, he said,
taking best practices from other countries.
Which
countries,
Inner City Press asked, Nigeria? Ambassador Christian said he could
not talk about other countries. He used to serve on the Security
Council, which routinely talks about countries from Sudan to North
Korea. But once off, diplomacy returns.
So
too with Spain.
Inner City Press asked Francisco Moza, Secretary General for Social
Policy of Spain's Ministry of Health and Social Policy to explain his
country's efforts to get immigrants to go back to Africa, by paying
them. Is that social inclusion? He replied that his ministry does not
cover immigration; he talked about Spain's historical and linguistic
ties to North Africa. Video here.
Is
Spain pushing
UNIFEM's Ms. Alberdi to take over the UN's forthcoming women's
agency, to be started on March 1? Francisco Moza called this
"delicate," something that should not be spoken of. One wag
in the audience translated this as "yes."
DSG Migiro with Spain's Alberdi, Vice
President, Amb.
Yanez-Barnuevo
Now
with the UN
press corps placed over the library on 42nd Street, and meeting like
the CSD taking place in the temporary "UN-KIA" building
between 46th and 48th Streets, CSD gets even less media coverage than
before.
But the
Spanish mission came to document its moment in the
development spotlight. After the financial crisis, Spain has less
money to try to buy good will and posts in the UN. Last time, Spain's
Alberdi got a job most involved NGOs said should have gone to a
candidate from India. And now? Watch this site.
* * *
As
Russia Denies Paulson's "Dump Fannie Mae" Story,
Chinese Tricks Explored
By
Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS, February 2 -- Buried in the just released memoir of former
U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is the allegation that in
August 2008 Russia asked China to join with it in dumping on the
market the securities of Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac.
While
Paulson does
not draw the connection, it was in August 2008 that Russia's conflict
with Georgia about the territories of South Ossetia and Abkhazia
flared up into a war. The U.S. Administration jumped to Georgia's
defense, at least verbally, and according to Paulson, Russia try to
lure China into a "dump the GSEs" campaign. As it turned
out, Russia did sell its over $60 billion stake in the two mortgage
giants.
Inner
City Press
asked a senior Russian representative to the UN about Paulson's story
on February 2, as the Security Council met about its program of work
for February. "I don't think so," the diplomat said.
Why
then would
Paulson tell the story? "We are getting closer with the U.S.,"
the diplomat said. "People get jealous." He went on, "We
don't have a good relationship with China right now. The U.S. does
not have a good relationship with China." He shrugged. "People
don't want Russia and the U.S. to get along."
Paulson
sources
his story in "On the Brink: Inside the Race to Stop the Collapse of the
Global Financial System" to the Chinese, bragging perhaps that they
hadn't gone
along with Russia's urging. So, in this view, was China trying to
drive a further wedge between Russia and the U.S.?
Paulson, China: Russia's "dump Fannie Mae" strategy
not shown
At
the time of the
South Ossetia and Abkhazia conflict, through which Russia recognized
both territories as countries independent from Georgia, China
expressed unease. What if Tibet or Taiwan, or even Uighur Xinjiang
Autonomous Region, were similar recognized by another state?
If
Chinese
officials did in fact pass dirt about Russia along to the U.S.
Treasury Secretary, perhaps the disagreement about recognizing
breakaway separatist states explains it. It's something that should
be expected to be covered more in the media, as Paulson hawks his
book. It is may arise further at the UN -- watch this site.
, 
