Posted on 04/07/2006 4:59:02 PM PDT by Tailgunner Joe
UNITED NATIONS, April 6 (Reuters) - The United States is quietly blocking the start of a long-awaited renovation of United Nations headquarters in hopes of keeping down costs, U.S. Ambassador John Bolton acknowledged on Thursday.
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan has asked for an authorization of $100 million in new spending to get the work under way later this year, but Washington wants to commit to just $23 million at present, Bolton said.
The plan has been languishing in the U.N. General Assembly's budget committee for the past three weeks, and diplomats said Washington was at this point the lone obstacle.
"For three weeks now, the committee has been hung up on the issue, with no real word from the U.S. as to where things stand and when they might get resolved," said one diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Bolton said: "This is not a matter of saying we are for or against the plan. What we are saying is, 'Let's do this in a responsible, prudent, graduated fashion.'"
A U.N. official, asked about the bottleneck, said only: "We hope for an early resolution so as not to delay the project."
The landmark 38-story U.N. skyscraper is one of New York's most popular tourist attractions. But after 54 years, it is riddled with asbestos and lacks fire detectors, a sprinkler system and other emergency safety devices.
The United Nations has been working for six years on a renovation plan for the tower.
The latest proposal, estimated at $1.2 billion to $1.6 billion or more has been scaled back and stretched out to avoid moving the whole organization into temporary headquarters while the work was carried out.
The renovations would be carried out in four phases, 10 stories at a time, over nine years.
The United States had offered a $1.2 billion loan at 5.54 percent to pay for the project. But Annan decided it would cost less if U.N. members kicked in the needed cash in the form of additional dues over a four- or five-year period.
Because Washington pays about a quarter of the regular U.N. budget, that would make the U.S. share about $400 million. But the delays are also driving up costs, U.N. officials say.
Pay Mayflower moving 100 mil to relocate the UN to France, or Uganda.
This is why democrats hate him. Go John go!
As a citizen of the United States of America, I thumb my nose at the useless waste of flesh that comprises most of the rest of the world.
You can rob us blind in taxes and we still dominate your asses.
We're better impaired than you are un-impaired.
Actually, anon got his panties in a twist when the U.S. ( Dubya) refused to give them a intrest free loan, with a provision for total forgiveness in it.
If it's not free kofi doesn't want it.
Have any of you read "Global Deception" by Joseph Klein?
I got my copy last Wednesday, stayed up all night and read it, and it is scary to think if we don't keep an eye on the U.N. we are going to be in SERIOUS TROUBLE....no wonder President Bush wanted Mr. Bolton in the U.N.
By the way, this is ANOTHER reason to keep Hill/Billy OUT of the White House and U.N.
I would be willing to give them the $100 million if they would take the whole thing out of this country and I do not care where they put it.
Move them to Zimbabwe.
If I remembeer right there are 180 sone countries in the UN so out part should be 180th of the total and it doesn't come to $400 mil.
http://www.radioblogger.com/images/07-22thedonald.mp3
http://www.radioblogger.com/images/07-22thedonald-qa.mp3
/sarc.
Be cheaper to get them some lawn chairs from Walmart and put them on a barge mored in the river.
Classic, that would be a sight...
Just what I was thinking when I read it .... send them off to Dafur ....
Go John Go!! Yah Bolton!!!!!!
Unpimp Turtle Bay.
Some history on the way this renovation should be done:[Donald] Trump: Let Me Rebuild U.N. Headquarters July 21, 2005Donald Trump, regarding the United Nations' remodeling plan (You're gonna LOVE this) July 23, 2005 MUST READ!
Kofi Annan Wants Donald Trump to Help with U.N. Renovations July 26, 2005
Seriously, I have long thought the UN headquarters should rotate every five or six years from one continent to another, and should each time be located in the most contentious area on the continent. That way the UN would learn to shit or get off the pot in a hurry. They would learn the real meaning of negotiating. Meanwhile, since their pampered membership like to eat and sleep well, and pass water and gas in peace, the host country would benefit in terms of a substantial development of a service industry which would perhaps remain even after the UN moved on. And if the temporary host country had little else to make it attractive, they could at least gussy-up the former UN headquarters and the former international school if idiots had not yet blown up either or both or religious or ethnic grounds!
And it would get those ruddy and rank UN bastards out of New York City, which could then allow private enterprises to tear down that insignificant and architecturally- challenged edifice and replace it with something of vastly greater economic and cultural value in about 18 months, or maybe 8 months.
"UN: a movable feist, fist, fest, feast, fossil, fart(oops), should have said phlegm!"
or Cuba.
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