[ad_1]
NEW YORK: An attempt by Estonia and Germany to overcome a stalemate between the United States and China at the United Nations Security Council, instead, seemed on Thursday (May 14) to reinforce their stalemate by action on the coronavirus pandemic .
For more than seven weeks, the 15-member council has been trying to agree on a text that ultimately aims to support a March 23 call by UN chief Antonio Guterres for a ceasefire in global conflicts for the world can focus on the pandemic.
Ad
READ: China “shocked” by US reversion of UN coronavirus action – Diplomat
READ: USA USA Says China Attempts to Steal COVID-19 Vaccine Research
But talks about a resolution drafted by France and Tunisia have been hampered by a clash between China and the United States over whether to ask the World Health Organization (WHO) for support. The United States does not want a reference to the global health body, while China has insisted that it be included.
Then on Tuesday, Estonia and Germany distributed a new simplified draft text to the Security Council that simply focuses on supporting Guterres and calling for a 90-day humanitarian truce in conflicts around the world. It does not refer to WHO.
Ad
READ: Trump says he doesn’t want to speak to Xi right now, could even cut ties with China
“All we want to see is a resolution establishing a ceasefire,” said United States Ambassador to the United Nations Kelly Craft during an online conversation Thursday with the University of North Carolina Policy Institute. at Chapel Hill.
“It does not matter which country presents that resolution. What matters is that it be simplified, that it talk about the global ceasefire and that it make sure that humanitarian aid reaches those most in need,” he said, noting his support for Estonia. and the German draft.
However, a Chinese diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the French and Tunisian draft resolution, which made a veiled reference to the WHO, “still enjoys overwhelming support from members and represents the best way forward” .
“There is no possibility of adopting the German and Estonian draft,” said the diplomat.
Washington stopped funding for the WHO, a UN agency, after President Donald Trump accused him of being “China-focused” and promoting China’s “disinformation” about the outbreak, the WHO says it denies.
Last week it appeared that the Security Council had reached a compromise on the resolution drafted by France and Tunisia. Rather than naming WHO, the draft referred to “specialized health agencies”. WHO is the only such agency.
But Washington rejected that language, diplomats said. The Chinese diplomat said that Beijing had accepted the pledge.
While the Security Council, charged with maintaining international peace and security, cannot do much to deal with the coronavirus itself, diplomats and analysts say it can project global unity by endorsing Guterres’ call for a ceasefire. .
