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Politics : Dutch Central Bank Sale Announcement Imminent? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: mcg404 who wrote (18268)	5/13/2003 7:03:54 PM
From: sea_urchin	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 81529

John > Seems (to me) you are arguing the UN is now meaningless (or at least as a mechanism for resolving international disputes) but they are still the means by which this must be resolved...what am i missing? Nothing. You have received my message loud and clear. Until the Iraq war, the UN used to be the international agency which decided on such matters as partitioning, peace keeping etc but now, since it has been effectively castrated by the US and its Coalition of the Willing, who acted contemptuously towards the Security Council over Iraq, how can anyone take its decisions seriously? In fact, even now, the UN is more concerned about "reconstruction" in Iraq than pronouncing on the legality, or otherwise, of the US/UK invasion and occupation which was clearly in violation of its Charter. Clearly, the UN has no "teeth" (or is it balls?) nor will it handle any thorny issue. Nevertheless, the UN, in collaboration with the US, the EU and Russia have apparently all agreed on the latest "road map" idea for the various steps to peace in the ME and the creation of a Palestinian state. Why and how this arrangement of nations came about is beyond my understanding because all were already members of the UN, as was Israel. Actually this group came together in December, 2002, before all the nonsense between the US and the UN started, and, as I see it, its presence already undermined the authority of the UN. However, and as could be expected, Israel has continued to act as belligerently and provocatively as possible, indeed, as if there was no peace plan in the offing. thescotsman.co.uk >>>United Nations officials reported that a ban on the entry of foreigners to Gaza was disrupting efforts to provide aid to registered Palestinian refugees, who make up most of the population of Gaza. "We have never seen anything like this," said Paul McCann, an official for the UN’s relief agency. The military closure also includes unprecedented restrictions on the entry of journalists to Gaza, following the shooting of a British journalist, apparently by Israeli troops, two weeks ago. The road map aims at a viable Palestinian state at peace with Israel within five years. It calls for a Palestinian halt to violence and a crack-down on armed groups in parallel with a limited Israeli troop withdrawal and freeze on construction at Jewish settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. Unlike the Palestinians, who accepted it despite reservations, Mr Sharon has steered clear of accepting the road map or its explicit timetable of mutual concessions.<<< smh.com.au >>>The Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, has publicly rejected dismantling Jewish settlements in the occupied territories, even as the US Secretary of State, Colin Powell, travels the region pushing a peace plan that requires such a move. In an interview with the right-wing Jerusalem Post newspaper Mr Sharon said that the removal of Jewish settlements built on land seized from Arabs "is not an issue on the horizon". The interview came a day after the departure from Israel of Mr Powell, who is touring the region to promote the "road map" which would lead to the establishment of a Palestinian state. The plan, drawn up last year by the so-called "quartet" of the United States, European Union, United Nations and Russia, requires Israeli withdrawal from much of the occupied territories in return for a Palestinian crackdown on attacks on Israel.<<< So, it's already clear that the road map is more fiction and more time wasting and Colin Powell's presence in the region is just window dressing, an attempt to make the US appear as if it "cares".