United Nations: Why are We Still a Member?

Over the years, the critics of the United Nations have multiplied in number. Its inability to be effective, to act with integrity, its anti-Semitic actions and its refusal to intervene in some of the world’s worst tragedies are well-known. Some people would say that it does accomplish some things, such as data collection and sharing, but its most prominent councils and agencies are fraught with political agendas and ineptitude.

Israel wins the prize for the volume of criticisms by the U.N. General Assembly:

Since 2015, the General Assembly has adopted 140 resolutions criticizing Israel, mainly over its treatment of the Palestinians, its relationships with neighboring countries and other alleged wrongdoings. Over the same period, it has passed 68 resolutions against all other countries, UN Watch said. The United Nations General Assembly passed more resolutions critical of Israel than against all other nations combined in 2022, contributing to what observers call an ongoing lopsided focus on the Jewish state at the world body.

Two years ago, the U.N. Human Rights Council established the Council of Inquiry to investigate Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians. The United States condemned the Council’s report in 2022 and that year, Pres. Donald Trump left the HRC. Unfortunately, the Biden Administration rejoined the Council, with State Department spokesman Ned Price stating:

We reengaged with and later re-joined the HRC in part to be in a better position to address its flaws, including this one, and we will continue to seek reforms. . . The US remains deeply committed to helping achieve peace for both Israelis and Palestinians and will support actions in the UN that bring the parties together to advance prospects for peace.

Clearly, good intentions are not nearly enough. In fact, the agency UNRWA, affiliated with the U.N., was key to delivering food to the Palestinians, but it was proven to be part of the Hamas forces that attacked Israel on October 7.

The poor governance of the United Nations goes far beyond the HRC and the nation of Israel. Even when Israel is not a part of the U.N. General Assembly agenda, they can be lured into the discussion anyway. This meeting was not atypical; it was intended to focus on the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals:

The recently elected president of Iran, Masoud Pezeshkian, spoke of his desire for reform and international engagement, while denouncing Israel’s ‘desperate barbarism.’ Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered an uncompromising address condemning ‘savage enemies who seek our annihilation,’ prompting several national delegations to walk out.

One way or another, Israel is identified as a source of the problem when they are not even involved.

The United Nations claims it makes many contributions to world peace and well-being. It says that all nations are equal and have “equal moral weight and integrity.” But that statement is difficult to reconcile with learning that Iran chaired the Human Rights Social Forum in 2021. Even more tragic, how does the U.N. reasonably explain its lack of action when nearly one million people were slaughtered in Rwanda in 1994 in only three months?

The U.N. Security Council has some tools for peacekeeping, but they have proven to have mixed results. It has no peacekeeping military of its own, and is funded and armed by member countries. But critics of the peacekeeping forces have pointed to their lack of engagement or sexual exploitation of the locals.

When discussions are held to explore reforms to the United Nations, they generally go nowhere. The competing agendas, politics, and historic clashes make agreement on changes nearly impossible.

In terms of being a model to the world for moral behavior, the U.N. falls far short. Sexual exploitation has been identified throughout the organization, followed by blackmail and financial improprieties. There is the question of whether the countries in the U.N. are sufficiently concerned to address these issues.

As a result of this mismanagement and overall ineffectiveness, I think people should have serious concerns about continuing to support the United Nations. In fact, I seriously question whether the U.S. should be involved with it. The fact is, the U.N. is almost powerless to take any kind of action against countries, besides criticizing them, cajoling them and begging them to comply with its demands. It doesn’t have the authority to hold countries accountable, to punish them or even remove them from membership.

When the U.S. first left the Security Council, there was consternation by some about that decision:

The Council is the world’s main human rights body – and it is crucial that all states engage with its work. The US has long been a leader on human rights, particularly through its work and support for the UN’s Geneva-based human rights mechanisms. By abandoning ship, the US has made it that much harder for like-minded states to protect and promote human rights. And it has set a dangerous and worrying precedent that other countries, particularly those who commit grave violations, may emulate.

I seriously doubt that we have continued to earn the adulation of the world or are even the leader on human rights; Americans have been shown disdain by our own government, and our global reputation is in decline.

We no longer serve a meaningful role in the United Nations, nor does it serve us well.

It’s time to move on.