Editorial Board
Why the U.S. Needs the UN, and Vice Versa
This article is for subscribers only.
Canny U.S. diplomacy, or barely redeemed gaffe? Russian opportunism, or sincere effort to stave off war? Syrian feint, or desperate gambit by a regime running scared? Whatever one thinks about how the U.S. and Russia reached their agreement to destroy Syria’s chemical weapons arsenal, one thing is clear: It couldn’t have been achieved in the absence of a strong international consensus against the use of chemical weapons.
Strengthening the ability of the United Nations to identify and enforce the world’s collective will should be high on President Barack Obama’s foreign policy agenda, beginning with his to the UN General Assembly.