UN General Assembly votes to give EU greater rights to participate in its work

The UN General Assembly on Tuesday adopted a resolution that increases the participation of the European Union (EU) in the UN body's affairs.

The resolution passed with 180 states in favor, zero against, and two, Zimbabwe and Syria, abstaining. Before the vote by the 192 nations, the EU representation announced several oral revisions to the text that were included in the final resolution.

The resolution secured super-observer status at the United Nations.

Catherine Ashton, high representative of the EU for foreign affairs and security policy, attended the Tuesday General Assembly meeting, and she thanked delegations of member states for the " extraordinary efforts you have made to help get this resolution into the best possible shape."

The resolution, which went through a lengthy consultation process before Tuesday's vote, allows the EU, which currently has observer status at the international organization, expanded privileges. These include the right to present amendments orally and the limited exercise of the right of reply. It also gives the EU the right to circulate their communications to the assembly and participate in assembly's general debate.

Ashton, addressing the General Assembly meeting after the vote, said that the adoption of the resolution will allow the EU to project a "clearer voice" to the UN. She stressed that the European regional organization has no intentions of disrespecting the UN with this newfound voice.

"I believe in the role, I believe in the collaboration, between the European Union and the United Nations and I have made it part of my remit to ensure that the European Union works as closely as possible with the United Nations as we seek to rise to the challenges that we face across the world," she said.

The new resolution explicitly says that the EU will not be allowed to vote, put forward candidacies or to co-sponsor resolutions and decisions.

An amendment by Zimbabwe that would have further weakened the right of reply for the EU was proposed to the General Assembly but rejected by vote. Six states voted in favor of this amendment while 142 opposed it and 20 abstained.

Some nations, including the small island developing state of Nauru, expressed reservations about the resolution, even after it passed.

Before the vote, Nauru's representative said that furthering the voice of an organization of countries like the EU, which has constituent states that already have their own individual representation at the UN could be problematic. She said this risks further obscuring the voices of small states like Nauru in the General Assembly.

"The discussions that we have in this house are already dominated by the issues of concern to countries with greater influence," she said. "The adoption of this resolution risks further entrenching this position; and again we trust that all states will actively work towards preventing the erosion of the equality of voice of the member states."

Source: Xinhua

	Weekly review     April 23   Pictures catch ancient & cultural heritage of a Sichuan town   April 28   Will China's rise lead to the decline of U.S.? April 25   Kunming-Singapore High-Speed Railway begins construction April 25   Chinese path -- a marvel of world's economic growth April 23   The week in pictures April 26   Second excavation to sunken 'Nan'ao No 1' finished April 27   Guizhou girl designs tea set for Prince William's wedding April 26   PLA reserve force Type 07 uniform makes debut in Beijing April 28   Old friends eye for new & higher levels of cooperation April 29   Shanghai auto show closes