Raising the specter of terrorism, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned congressional leaders on Wednesday that she would recommend a veto of Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen?s bill redefining America?s relationship with the United Nations.
The controversial bill, due for a markup in Ros-Lehtinen?s committee on Thursday, would condition U.S. funding of the U.N. on conversion from an assessment-based dues system to one that operates on voluntary contributions from member nations.
Continue Reading?Withholding U.S. contributions and shifting to voluntary funding erode the concrete dividends of our leadership and undermine ongoing reform efforts at the United Nations,? Clinton wrote in letters ? obtained by POLITICO ? to Ros-Lehtinen and California Rep. Howard Berman, who is the top Democrat on the Committee.
It?s unlikely the bill would make it to President Barack Obama?s desk, but Clinton?s warning to the Foreign Affairs Committee was still strong.
?If implemented, the bill?s requirement to withhold 50 percent of U.S. assessed contributions to the United Nations absent a shift to voluntary-only funding would undercut international collaboration in advancing core U.S. national security interests such as staunching nuclear proliferation, combating terrorism, fully implementing sanctions on countries such as Iran and North Korea, preventing conflict around the globe, supporting elections in countries just undergoing transition to democracy, fighting pandemic disease, providing life-saving humanitarian relief to countries such as Haiti, and supporting peaceful transitions in places such as the new nation of South Sudan,? she wrote. ?Through international cooperation, the United States reaps real security benefits that make Americans safer and more secure.?
That list hits several areas close to the hearts of various groups of Republicans, including pro-Israel lawmakers who take a hard line against Iran and religious conservatives who support international humanitarian missions.
At a time when U.S. dollars are scarce, many Republicans have become increasingly critical of American funding of an international body that is often at odds with U.S. interests. The issue has taken on a partisan tinge in Congress, and, despite several months of efforts, Ros-Lehtinen has been unable to find a Democratic cosponsor.
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