United Nations

UNITED NATIONS - When President Bush greeted Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Wednesday, he gestured toward John R. Bolton, the U.S. ambassador, and asked, "Has the place blown up since he's been here?" The internal U.N. television sound boom that picked up the jest did not record any response from the secretary-general, who simply smiled. But the same question, in less explosive form, has been posed repeatedly around the United Nations since the arrival Aug. 1 of Bolton, who famously once said that the headquarters building was filled with such sloth and incompetence that it would not matter if 10 of its 38 floors were lopped off. In response, his fellow ambassadors say they are impressed with Bolton's work ethic, his knowledge of his brief, his clarity in declaring it and his toughness as a negotiator.

IT WAS A weakened and perhaps even chastened President Bush who addressed the United Nations yesterday in what for him was a conciliatory tone. His fiasco of a war in Iraq, bungled oversight of disaster preparations revealed by Hurricane Katrina, and record low regard among his fellow Americans have taken their toll on Mr. Bush's ability to carry off the cocky self-confidence that typically marks his appearance at U.N. meetings. Yes, he repeated his usual spiel about fighting terrorism.

UNITED NATIONS - President Bush turned from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina to diplomacy yesterday, meeting with Iraq's president at the White House before traveling to New York for two days of talks focusing on North Korea's nuclear ambitions and reforming the United Nations. Iraqi President Jalal Talabani warned that it would be the end of next year before Iraqi security forces are capable of taking over from "many American troops," suggesting that the time when all U.S. forces might return could be well after that.

WASHINGTON - The leaders of 175 countries, including President Bush, will gather at the United Nations this week for a world summit intended to reform and reinvigorate the world organization to meet the threats and challenges of the new century. The occasion also should provide the leaders with the opportunity to address what has long been considered an Achilles heel of the international body, U.N. peacekeeping, which needs to be strengthened, not placed on the back burner. The recent report of a congressionally mandated task force on the United Nations, chaired by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell, states that peacekeeping is "arguably, the most important U.N. activity designed to prevent and end conflict and build stable societies."

Pope continues outreach effort to other faiths The Sun's editorial "Papal outreach" (Aug. 26) made some valuable points about Pope Benedict XVI's approach to Judaism and Islam. However, in pointing out what the pope should have said during his recent visit to Germany for World Youth Day, the writer did not seem to realize that Pope Benedict had already spoken to these issues on a very public stage. Poverty, globalization, racism and other issues "that have alienated many Muslims and provoked a hatred for the West" have been tackled by Pope Benedict and his representative at the United Nations.

BUREAUCRATS who stuff their pockets with money intended to mitigate the suffering of the hard-pressed Iraqi people are a disgrace. It was true when Saddam Hussein was in power and the United Nations was directing the oil-for-food program - and it is true today. The latest investigative report into the United Nations' aid project - which was designed to cushion ordinary Iraqis from the effects of U.N. sanctions - provided dismaying new evidence of criminal conduct. That the United Nations should prove so susceptible to corruption is bad enough, but that the corrupt officials were essentially in cahoots with the Iraqi regime is despicable.

UNITED NATIONS - A former U.N. official pleaded guilty yesterday to soliciting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes from companies seeking U.N. contracts under the oil-for-food program, the U.S. attorney's office in New York said. Secretary-General Kofi Annan waived diplomatic immunity for Alexander Yakovlev, a senior procurement officer, so that he could be prosecuted in U.S. courts. Yakovlev pleaded guilty to conspiracy, wire fraud and money-laundering. Each offense is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

TALK ABOUT a diplomatic challenge! After months of getting banged around by the Senate like a political pinata, John R. Bolton has finally secured the post of U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, but only because President Bush chose to give the Senate the raspberry. Thus, Mr. Bolton assumes his duties in a diminished condition. Not only did he fail to win the confidence of Congress, he's a short-timer with only 17 months to serve before his temporary appointment runs out. Why should anyone in the cantankerous global assembly take Mr. Bolton seriously as he tries to promote American interests while working to reform an institution of which he has been openly contemptuous?

IN LESS THAN three months, Haiti is expected to hold local elections leading to parliamentary and presidential elections that are meant to herald the return of democracy to that perpetually troubled Caribbean country and signal yet another example of successful nation-building by the United States. There's just one hitch: Haiti is no democratic success story. Though an American-supported regime change did topple the former president, since then, Haiti has been racked with kidnappings - more than 450 since March - political killings and rampant street violence.