On
Ukraine's
Request for
DPKO, UN Said
No Formal
Request - But
Feb 23 Letter
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS, March
13 -- When UN
Under
Secretary
General
Jeffrey
Feltman
addressed the
UN Security
Council about
Ukraine on
March 6, he
told the
members about
“President
Poroshenko's
February 17
statement
noting that
Ukraine will
be requesting
a possible
deployment of
a UN-mandated
peace mission
to Ukraine.
Subsequent to
that,
Ukrainian
Foreign
Minister
Klimkin held
discussions
with the
Secretary-General,
Under
Secretary
General
Ladsous and
myself on this
issue. We
informed the
Foreign
Minister that
it was a
decision for
the members of
this Council
and that the
Secretariat
would be
guided by its
decision. To
date, no
formal request
has been
received from
Ukraine.”
But on March
13, UN
spokesman
Stephane
Dujarric said,
of Ukrainian
statement that
they HAVE
requested UN
peacekeepers
"there
was a letter
sent to the
Secretary
General on
February 23.
Our reaction
to that letter
is what we've
been saying
publicly, that
the deployment
of UN peace
operations
requires a
resolution and
decision by
the UN
Security
Council."
So the UN
didn't
disclose the
February 23
letter
requesting
peacekeepers
because they
wouldn't grant
it, so it
wasn't a
"formal"
request?
Inner City
Press asked
Dujarric on
March 13 about
his statement,
and Feltman's
on March 6.
Dujarric said
he would check
the dates.
Beyond militating
for a Freedom
of Information
Act for the UN,
the Free
UN Coalition
for Access
believes that
the UN or at
least its
Office of the
Secretary
General should
presumptively
disclose such
letters that
it receives,
at least
unless the
submitted
requests
confidential
treatment.
We'll have
more on this.
, 
