From bullying out reformers to blocking efforts to save millions.
When
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Russian President Vladimir Putin met in
Sochi, Russia, they were supposed to discuss the civil war in Syria. But the
Russian leader -- joined by his top diplomat, Sergei Lavrov, and defense
secretary, Sergei Shoigu -- suddenly changed the subject to more mundane
matters. A series of U.N. reforms aimed at streamlining billions of dollars of spending
on U.N. peacekeeping was posing a threat to Russia's commercial interests.
Putin and his national security team politely but firmly pressed the U.N.
leader to back off, according to several senior U.N.-based sources briefed on
the meeting.
The
high-level intervention on U.N. spending marked only the latest example of
Russia flexing its diplomatic muscle to protect its commercial position at the
United Nations. For much of the past decade, Russia has been engaged in a
systematic effort to stymie attempts to root out corruption in U.N. spending.
The Russians have pushed out U.N. reformers. They've defanged watchdogs. And
they've blocked internal budget reforms aimed at saving costs.
For the rest of the story: http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2013/06/25/the_inside_story_of_russias_fight_to_keep_the_un_corrupt
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