Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), President Donald Trump’s nominee to symbolize the U.S. on the United Nations, on Tuesday painted the worldwide group as a physique beset by bias in opposition to Israel, nefarious Chinese language affect and ineffective peacekeeping efforts.
However she argued the U.N. isn’t irredeemable and pledged that she’d assist usher “robust American management” on the multilateral physique.
Earlier than a usually cordial panel of senators on the International Relations Committee, the New York Republican stated Washington may nonetheless thwart rising Chinese language affect on the worldwide stage by growing its presence on the international discussion board.
“We have to have robust American management working with our allies to push again on this,” Stefanik stated. “China has made inroads in inserting CCP leaders and Chinese language diplomats in positions as heads of varied sub-U.N. companies, but additionally on the most junior stage,” she added, utilizing the acronym for the Chinese language Communist Social gathering.
Stefanik stated she’d try to extend the variety of U.S. residents working inside the United Nations system and work with schools and universities to recruit early-career professionals to that finish, calling it a “human capital technique” to fight China.
She pledged to be a powerful advocate for Israel, declaring that the spate of U.N. resolutions in opposition to Israel amid its battle with the Palestinians exhibits the U.S. “shouldn’t be assembly the mission of worldwide peace and safety.” She stated she’d work to evaluation the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Lebanon to evaluation the way it allowed Iran-backed proxy Hezbollah to rearm and regroup.
Stefanik additionally stated she’d deal with reforming the U.N. system and making certain that U.S. funding is “going to packages by the U.N. that work, which have a foundation within the rule of regulation, which have a foundation in transparency and accountability, and strengthen our nationwide safety and our partnerships.” She particularly known as out the U.N. Aid and Works Company, the principle company tasked with distributing humanitarian help in Gaza, saying it turned a blind eye to native employees’ ties to the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
UNRWA has pushed back on such claims from Stefanik and others, saying that experiences that giant numbers of workers participated within the Oct. 7 assaults in opposition to Israel have been inaccurate.
The reasonable Republican turned ardent Trump backer is usually anticipated to be simply confirmed and with out a lot severe opposition from Senate Democrats who see her as much less polemical than different nominees and broadly agree along with her on the necessity to assist Israel.
Democrats principally stored their questions centered on coverage, although there was a short back-and-forth over a gesture from tech mogul and Trump ally Elon Musk at a Monday rally that was in comparison with a Nazi salute. They averted questioning Stefanik on her positions on the Jan. 6, 2021, assaults, even after Trump pardoned 1000’s accused, and in some instances convicted, of storming the U.S. Capitol the night time earlier than.
It’s unclear whether or not Stefanik’s playbook will differ significantly from that adopted by Trump’s envoys to the U.N. in his first administration, wherein the U.S. often lashed out on the physique and pulled out of some teams, together with the Human Rights Council.
