Robert McMahon

Also by Robert McMahon

• October 26, 2004

  Iraq: IAEA Notifies UN About Missing Explosives

  The United Nation's nuclear watchdog agency has informed the UN Security Council that more than 340 metric tons of explosives have been looted from a previously secured site in Iraq. The agency acted after a newspaper report quoted Iraqi officials' disclosure of the theft, which occurred sometime in the past 18 months. The news quickly became an issue in the U.S. presidential election campaign, with challenger John Kerry accusing the Bush administration of incompetence in Iraq. U.S. officials say they are treating the report seriously but note the difficulty in securing all Iraqi arms sites.

• October 22, 2004

  World: UN Members Clash Anew Over Ban On Human Cloning

  UN members appear deadlocked over the issue of allowing cloning for medical purposes. The start of a two-day debate in a UN General Assembly committee showed there has been little progress in bridging the differences that stalled action on a global convention to ban cloning last year. Leading European Union and Asian states are promoting a draft that would permit UN members to decide individually whether to pursue what has been called therapeutic cloning. A group led by the United States, meanwhile, continues to press for a ban on all forms of cloning, calling it unethical.

• October 21, 2004

  Iraq: Fijian Forces To Protect Some UN Officials, But More Troops Needed

  UN officials have confirmed that a contingent of soldiers from Fiji will protect senior UN officials in Iraq in the first major commitment of troops to UN security outside the U.S.-led coalition. In the absence of any other major commitment, the UN is also discussing further protection from U.S. forces. The announcements come amid new calls from Iraqi officials for a greater UN commitment to preparing for national elections slightly more than three months away.

• October 19, 2004

  Chechnya: Land Mines Seen As Continuing Scourge

  Experts in the global campaign to ban land mines are seeking to focus new attention on the impact of those weapons on Chechen civilians to try to prompt Russian government action. The president of an upcoming summit on land mines told RFE/RL that Chechnya -- where Russian forces continue to battle separatist rebels -- is the world's most mine-affected region. A prominent watchdog group, meanwhile, plans to single out Russia as a country of concern in an upcoming global report on land mines.

• October 18, 2004

  U.S.: Global Impact -- Election Seen As Multilateralism Versus Unilateralism, But Rhetoric Clouds Reality (Part 1)

  U.S. President George W. Bush has acquired a reputation as a unilateralist who favors military action to advance U.S. interests in the world. Democratic challenger Senator John Kerry has promised to return U.S. foreign policy to multilateral traditions and place more emphasis on diplomacy to promote U.S. goals. The two men present dramatically different alternatives to a world closely watching the U.S. election. In the first of a three-part series on the global impact of the U.S. presidential vote on 2 November, RFE/RL explores the prospects for multilateral engagement by the two main candidates and finds they have more in common than might first appear.

• October 13, 2004

  Iraq: UN Mission Hopes For Tighter Controls On Iraqi 'Dual-Use' Sites

  An official with the UN's arms inspection team for Iraq says his agency remains concerned about the disappearance of material that could be used to make chemical, biological or ballistic weapons. A spokesman for the UN body, Ewen Buchanan, told RFE/RL that inspectors have made clear to Iraqi officials their readiness to help safeguard sites storing such materials. Buchanan was commenting a day after the UN's nuclear agency raised alarm over missing equipment from Iraqi facilities.

• October 12, 2004

  Afghanistan: UN Official Hails Vote As 'Special Event'

  A senior UN official has called the Afghan elections an impressive achievement that bodes well for the country's political development. The deputy head of UN peacekeeping, Hedi Annabi, said an investigation is under way into charges of vote fraud and intimidation. But he told the UN Security Council today that the elections were generally well run and orderly. The Security Council praised the elections as a milestone for the country and urged Afghan authorities to follow through with parliamentary polls in the spring.

• October 06, 2004

  Sudan: UN Maintains Pressure To End Civilian Plight

  The UN special envoy to Sudan says the government has failed to improve security for civilians in the Darfur region and has not taken steps to prosecute those responsible for atrocities. Envoy Jan Pronk's report to the UN Security Council has echoed recent reports of other UN experts about conditions in Darfur. He appealed to the international community to maintain pressure on Sudan and assist in the deployment of an African force to protect civilians. Otherwise, he said, there is risk of deterioration in what is already called the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

• October 01, 2004

  UN: Echoes Of Reform Sound At General Assembly Debate

  Reform of the UN Security Council was a frequent topic of discussion (file photo) The high-level debate of the 59th session of the UN General Assembly, which ended this week (21 September-1 October), featured the now-familiar litany of concerns about terrorism, weapons of mass destruction, poverty, and development. But the topic mentioned most often by speakers was reform of the UN Security Council through expansion of its membership. There were calls for reform within member states as well. Secretary-General Kofi Annan urged respect for the rule of law, U.S. President George W. Bush promoted democratization, and Pakistani's President Pervez Musharraf pressed for repairing relations between Muslims and the West.

• September 29, 2004

  Moldova Criticizes Russian Role In Transdniester

  29 September 2004 (RFE/RL) -- Moldova Foreign Minister Andrei Stratan has repeated his government's call for international peacekeepers to replace the Russian unit in breakaway Transdniester.

• September 28, 2004

  UN: Peacekeeping Chief Outlines Security Plan For Afghan Polls

  The top peacekeeping official at the United Nations says security for Afghanistan's presidential elections will be provided by a combination of international and national forces and tribal leaders. UN Undersecretary-General for Peacekeeping Jean-Marie Guehenno has told the UN Security Council that Afghan police and army units will be responsible for security at local levels, and will get some back up by international forces. Guehenno acknowledged security concerns but predicted that the 9 October elections would be seen as "honest and credible."

• September 28, 2004

  Georgia: Minister Says Tbilisi To Seek Common Ground With Russia

  Georgian leaders have sought to use the opening of the UN General Assembly debate to promote a new relationship with Russia. In his assembly address, President Mikheil Saakashvili said rapprochement with Russia would be a central part of Georgia's ongoing transition efforts. In a later interview, Georgian Foreign Minister Salome Zourabichvili told RFE/RL that her government wants to highlight the common interests the two sides have in establishing border security and resolving the unsettled status of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

• September 24, 2004

  UN: Russia Urges Reform Of International Antiterrorism Measures

  Russia's Sergei Lavrov (file photo) Russia has called for a reform of international security structures, primarily through the United Nations, to improve antiterrorism efforts in the wake of the Beslan attack. Russia circulated a draft Security Council resolution that would speed the handover of people accused of abusing refugee status to support terrorism. It won quick support at the UN General Assembly debate from Britain although the two countries disagree over some current asylum cases. The statements came on a day when many key UN members expressed concern about efforts to fight terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

• September 23, 2004

  Iraq: Mixed Signals On Support For Security At UN

  There have been mixed signals from leaders at the UN General Assembly about contributing forces to safeguard Iraq's elections. Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has remained noncommittal about providing peacekeepers, while Georgian Foreign Minister Salome Zurabishvili affirmed her country's offer of hundreds of troops to a UN special protection force.

• September 22, 2004

  Georgia: President Vows Peaceful Resolution Of Separatist Conflicts

  Mikheil Saakashvili (file photo) Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili has told the UN General Assembly that Georgia aims to solve its separatist conflicts with South Ossetia and Abkhazia peacefully and find new ways of cooperating with Russia. Saakashvili called for an enhanced international role, saying the unresolved conflicts pose a threat to Georgia and the region. He outlined a series of measures aimed at building trust and unifying the state. The president also became the first leader to formally commit forces to protect UN personnel in Iraq.

• September 22, 2004

  Georgian President Vows Peaceful Solutions To Crises

  Georgian President Saakashvili (file photo) United Nations, 22 September 2004 (RFE/RL) -- Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili told the UN General Assembly late yesterday that he is determined to solve the separatist conflicts with South Ossetia and Abkhazia peacefully and find new ways of cooperating with Russia.

• September 21, 2004

  UN: Bush Links Democracy, Human Rights To Global Security

  George W. Bush (file photo) U.S. President George W. Bush has urged UN members to support U.S.-led efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan, saying they are crucial to the spread of democracy and stability in the world. Bush also defended the U.S. invasion of Iraq as justified by Security Council resolutions. But the president's speech focused on broader initiatives on welfare and human rights. Moments earlier, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan told the assembly that what he called a "shameless disregard" for rule of law had become widespread. He cited both the rampant abuses of terrorists as well as excessive efforts by states fighting terrorism.

• September 21, 2004

  Kosovo: UN Group Discusses Revival Of Political Process, Status Issue

  High-level officials from a group of countries helping to set United Nations policy for Kosovo have discussed measures aimed at ending the political stalemate over the province's future. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan late yesterday briefed officials of the Contact Group and other regional leaders on possible adjustments to the UN reform plan for Kosovo, known as "standards before status." Annan is seeking to revive the political process six months after a major outbreak of violence and maintain international pressure for reforms.

• September 20, 2004

  UN: General Assembly Set To Debate Amid Talk Of Security Council Reform

  Kofi Annan (file photo) The UN General Assembly gathers for its 59th annual debate on 21 September amid renewed talk of reforming the Security Council and other top UN bodies. As the two-week debate gets started, there are signals from a UN expert panel that it has made progress on a formula to expand the Security Council from its current 15 members. Leaders from India, Germany, and other top developed and developing states will make their case for permanent membership in the next two weeks.

• September 17, 2004

  World: Conference Seeks to Assert 'Gender Justice' In Conflict Zones

  Women have suffered disproportionately in the civil wars of the post-Cold War period. A UN conference this week in New York attracted a number of prominent women from postconflict societies who sought to highlight gender justice as an issue requiring urgent attention. Their goal is to end widespread impunity for abuses committed against women in times of war and to involve women more closely in peacemaking. RFE/RL talked with leading female figures from the Balkans and Afghanistan about the challenges they face.

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