The Foreign Service Journal, September 2006

This year, Annan submitted a U.S.- supported reform plan (a watered- down version of Gingrich-Mitchell, but still a reform plan) to the Budget Committee and the General Assem- bly. However, the G-77 plus China forced a vote in April on a resolution to table Annan’s reform proposals for several months, betting that the secre- tary-general would not be able to push through reforms during his last year. Reform lost 108 to 50. The good news is that Washington is now in a stronger position to reduce or even eliminate U.N. funding on a selective basis. The greater the U.S. pressure, the more likely administrative reform becomes. Third, the appointments of Chris Burnham, a former chief financial officer of the State Department, as U.N. under secretary for manage- ment, and Mark Malloch Brown, a U.K. citizen who has lived in the U.S. for years, as deputy secretary-general, have strengthened the chances for anti-corruption reform significantly. Burnham is the real thing, a financial official of unquestioned integrity and capability who also has extensive pri- vate-sector experience. The current large-scale, anti-corruption campaign began with his arrival on the job late last year. I met Malloch Brown in a commercial activity with which we were both associated several years ago, and know him to be an honest and effective executive. I sincerely hope that he can help change U.N. culture. Recommendations for Action To take advantage of the current favorable prospects for reform, I rec- ommend the following steps be taken by U.S. governments, current and future: • Candidates to replace Secretary- General Annan, who steps down at the end of this year, are already poli- ticking. None can be confirmed with- out U.S. backing. Washington should S E P T E M B E R 2 0 0 6 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 19 S P E A K I N G O U T