UNITED NATIONS, May 7, updated -- The UN Security Council's dinner with Iranian Foreign Minister Mottaki on Thursday night featured "excellent cuisine," Russian attendee Dolgov told the Press on Friday morning, "I am satisfied." Several Council members, however, either left early (Mexico), came late (Uganda), or didn't come at all (Nigeria and Gabon).
Of the Permanent Five members of the Council, China's Li Baodong was the only Permanent Representative to attend. It was argued, not by Mr. Dolgov, that Russia's P.R. Vitaly Churkin might have attended, but for a dinner with World War Two generals.
Friday morning in front of the Security Council's new basement chambers, Nigeria's absence was excused as part of mourning the President's death. Gabon's Ambassador, who arrived at 10:15 for Friday's Council session on the UN's embattled Chad mission MINURCAT, told Inner City Press, "I'm late, I'll talk with you after" the meeting. France's attendee de la Riviere declined to comment on the dinner conversation.
Inner City Press spoke with one Permanent Representative who attended and who said that the Iranians described the various offers they have made about uranium, but showed "little change of position" on enrichment.
Mexican Ambassador Claude Heller, recently returned from a Somalia sanctions trip to spots from Asmara to Yemen, left the dinner after 15 minutes. (It is pointed out that he arrived early and "had a little chat.") Uganda's Ambassador Rugunda, who spoke earlier on Thursday to a group of UN Ambassador's spouses, arrived an hour into the dinner.
Much was made of the presence of U.S. deputy ambassador Alejandro Wolff. Some said he was the highest ranking US official to attend such an Iranian event in the US in 32 years. When he left the dinner, from the reporters staked out on the sidewalk came a mock wolf howl, to try to get a readout. Still none was forthcoming.
Japan's Ambassador Takasu, who alone spoke with the media after the dinner, was chided Friday for having spoken only in Japanese, to Japanese media. "I saw only Japanese there," Takasu said as he went into the Council Friday morning. We will interpret this as a too-rare joke.
While as Inner City Press predicted Thursday afternoon, the UK sent neither of its two top officials. Deputy Parham, attending the retirement party of a long time human rights advocate on Thursday evening, was asked if this reflected the UK prioritizing human rights over non-proliferation. He affably declined to comment.
The UK Mission to the UN is "in purdah," apparently not allowed to speak to the press until there is a government and foreign ministry machinery in place. "Hopefully by the end of the NPT," it was said. So how will they vote on the Chad MINURCAT mission extension, which must be done by May 15? Watch this site.
