The Foreign Service Journal, September 2006

let alone the dimensions of the missed opportunity. If the League of Nations was the first generation of global multilateral organizations and the United Nations the second, it is high time to begin considering the archi- tecture of a third-generation entity. What kind of United Nations system would we create if we were designing it from scratch today? Here are some of the issues that, for the most part, have been conspicuous mostly by their absence from the global governance policy debate. The Security Council In the past decade or so, several important initiatives have advanced not so much by changing the Security Council, but by going around it. The Rome International Criminal Court Treaty and Ottawa Landmine Treaty, for example, were both initially kept off the U.N. agenda by the United States. In response, smart coalitions of mid- dle-power governments and civil-society organizations generated enough political momentum to actually bring into being two brand-new multilateral treaties, despite Washington’s intransigent opposition. The ICC and the landmine ban are clearly here to stay. And we have like- ly not seen the last of this new technique for changing the international political status quo. Still, those near-term successes hardly obviate the need for longer-term structural transformations. Perhaps the most important of these is the veto. Few things could be more profoundly undemocratic than a rule that allows a single state to stand opposed to the rest of the world, and command the rest of the world into impotence and inaction. Even when a veto is not actually cast, veto calculations dominate virtually every decision the Security Council makes. Why? Because it is always necessary to get all five permanent members on board. Has there been any exercise in the past decade more inequitable (or cynical) than the one in December 1996, when the vote to reap- point U.N. Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali to a second term tallied up at 14-1 ... but the “one” won? If we believe, as Churchill insisted, that “democracy is the F O C U S 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 35 The Janne t t e Embassy P l an Overseas Insurance for Personal Auto & Contents Coverage Each policy is backed by the expertise and dedicated support of our customer service team. To learn more about the specific coverages offered by the plan, please visit our website at www.jannetteintl.com. The Janne t t e Embassy P l an Administered by Clements International One Thomas Circle NW, 8th Floor, Washington D.C. 20005 (800) 256-5141 (202) 478-6595 Fax (202) 466.9069 jannetteplan@clements.com www.jannetteintl.com Your Reliable Choice Since 1969, the Jannette Embassy Plan has provided dependable coverage to thousands of Foreign Service Personnel throughout the world. Our plan provides U.S. and Canadian personnel working at embassies and consulates insurance protection for their personal property, including automobiles and household effects. WORLDWIDE COVERAGE Fire, theft comprehensive and collision protection are available at foreign posts U.S. AUTO LIABILITY Available for short-term on home leave, change of assignment, and new auto purchase prior to foreign departure. This coverage must be issued in combination with an Jannette Embassy Plan FOREIGN LIABILITY Contact post for compliance with local laws, excess liability limits over local liability coverage PERSONAL COVERAGE Household goods, transit, valuables, personal liability and life insurance EMPLOYEE ASSOCIATION INSURANCE Including directors and officers