U.N. Undersecretary-General for Management Angela Kane told reporters that only 13 of the United Nations’ 192 member states had paid in full as of Wednesday. The total arrears amounted to some $4.1 billion, up from $2.2 billion at the end of 2009, Kane said.
“It has been a difficult year in many ways for many member states because of the economic recession,” she said.
The administration of President Barack Obama repaid all the money the United States owed the United Nations last year. U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice told reporters on Thursday that Washington pays its U.N. dues “in full and on time.”
She said there was an issue of “contested arrears” — debts that Washington does not agree it owes the United Nations.
“They must be counting contested arrears if it gets to a figure which gets close to anything like that,” she said in reference to the $1.2 billion figure cited by Kane.
As the United Nations’ single biggest contributor, Washington is responsible for roughly one-quarter of the U.N. peacekeeping budget and slightly less than a quarter of the separate U.N. regular budget.
Sorry guys, the line forms at the rear.
Move the UN to Africa
cut them off and kick them out of the US
Maybe we should charge them rent.
For once.
Contributions to the UN probably represent the absolute worst return on investment that America can make.
Just write them a three-party, post dated, out of town check.
Whadda bunch of dupes.
The UN (doesn’t) work exactly the way the USA wants.
Silly Sheeple.
UN….gives me a headache, urgh
Pay them with vouchers for parking tickets.
The UN (doesn’t) work.
Silly Bobbo
Say JB==what do you think “the purpose” of the UN is?
By charter?
By practice?
By desire?
By design?
By imposition?
What single issue self centered issue are you limiting yourself too? Concerned advocates of one world government want to know.
Get rid of the UN. We don’t need to pay people 1.2 billion dollars to hate us and hate Israel. If I was Congress, I would vote to defund the UN.
So on top of the free land, why is the US paying one quarter of the bill?
And why is the UN spending that much money?
No offense, dear Yanks, but with each passing day it looks more and more likely that it will be the US that will be begging the UN (and individual states) to bail them out, not the other way around. When Chinese start having their way with this country, then you will appreciate the international community and a need for an international institution. For now, keep bitching and whining.
Proud Alien: in the inevitability that you assume, of what benefit will the UN be to the USA? While I welcome you caution, you don’t post as if you understand what the UN is good for/used for either. But its good to see the idiocy of JB, Benji, and Mickey offset just a bit.
Ben will that printed while you wait..
http://rense.com/1.imagesH/printing_dees.jpg
In defence of the UN, most people have no idea what it does and thanks to the likes of Newscorp and CNN they never will. My personal angle on this is to privatise and outsource it, put it’s primary functions up for tender. Let Blackwater keep peace in the DMZ, MacDonald run the World Food Program, The Vatican run UNICEF, Disney can handle UNESCO.
Don’t underestimate the importance of our permanent seat on the Security Council. Maintaining our right to veto for a couple billion a year is cheap. Were we to withdraw from the UN, our seat would be gone, our veto would be gone, and soon thereafter, the primacy of our laws in our own country would be gone as well.
2 ideas:
1. Give them an IOU. It works for California.
or
2. China’s got all the money. Maybe they should be paying a bigger share of the UN bill. After all, I do think at a certain point you’ve made enough money.
Smith, the UN can’t dictate the US’s laws.
Proud Alien, China has a veto at the UN. So what good is the UN under your scenario.
Come and get it, assholes.
@ brm
You beat me to it!
…and the UN owes us world peace.
The check is in the mail!
UNable
MikeN, do you understand that there are Supreme Court Justices — Ginsberg for one — who have written opinions suggesting that our Constitution must differ to EU law?
And if the UN decided to impose sanctions against the United States — which would be a given if we were not on the Security Council — do you think that this country is strong enough both militarily and economically to defy the world?
Keep in mind that Bush and Rumsfield were charged with war crimes in World Court. (Fortunately, the judge threw out the case.) And let’s not forget how the bankers of the world are insisting upon the creation of a new world currency.
I hate our participation in the UN, but our membership as one of the five permanent members on the Security Council grants us immunity from the type of sanctions imposed upon countries like Libya, Iran and North Korea.
I wouldn’t give them one cent. The UN is useless.
Smith, the reason the cases against Rumsfeld and others were dropped, wasn’t because of any UN membership. It was because Rumsfeld threatened to move the NATO headquarters out of Brussels, unless the EU backed down. And it will always be US military might that stops others, not a veto at the UN Security Council. The UN regularly bashes Israel, with the US providing vetoes. If the US were not vetoing, do you think that would hurt Israel any more? She does what she wants.
Give them the deed to Texas and call it even.