By Matthew Russell Lee, Exclusive
UNITED NATIONS, March 27 --The Security Council was meeting about the Middle East Tuesday morning when the man who would be the next President of the General Assembly stopped by the stakeout and spoke with Inner City Press.
Serbia's foreign minister Vuk Jeremic has been campaigning, including most recently around New York meeting on the Alliance of Civilizations, as has the Permanent Representative of Lithuania which played and then withdrew a card at the OSCE and has argued that Serbia is trying to jump the line, and that Jeremic does not, but should, speak Russian. This was an exclusive interview with Jeremic, conducted in English.
Jeremic began with the argument the Lithuania is getting or at least seeking too many position as once. Jeremic said the Lithuania's "position is next to impossible. In five years, they did ECOSOC, they want the PGA, and to join the Security Council." He paused and added by comparison, "Germany can't have this."
At last week's Pakistan Day event Inner City Press was pitched with a counter argument, that smaller countries might want to bundle their positions they get so that they can bulk up their mission to the UN all at one time, and otherwise conserve resources. Inner City Press asked Jeremic about this argument and he laughed. "We can do the Security Council too if they insist,"he said.
It has been argued to Inner City Press that Jeremic is far less than a majority in the Eastern European group, but since they don't have rules for voting in the group, he can push it to the General Assembly plenary and there, it was argued, "play the card of NAM," the Non Aligned Movement. Inner City Press asked Jeremic about this.
On the decision moving to the full General Assembly he said, "I think it's almost inevitable. Like GRULAC [the Latin America and Caribbean group] the Eastern European group doesn't take votes, for a very specific historical reasons. We do it be consensus or take it to the plenary," the full GA.
Would Serbia as argued "play the NAM card," even as they apply for European Union membership?
Jeremic laughed. "Who wouldn't?" he asked. "We organize the largest NAM conference in history, by number of attendees, last year in Belgrade."
Beyond the horse race aspect, Inner City Press asked Jeremic about Security Council reform. He replied that the Security Council "has to be changed, it has to get bigger representation." He said that Serbia "hasn't supp the G-4," consisting of India, Brazil, Germany and Japan.
Jeremic said, "we have two good friends in G-4 and two people who are not exactly helpful who are in the G-4.. Serbia is going to decide based on its national interest. We have only one thing in the Security Council, and we consult with those who support us. Who wouldn't?" Who indeed.
Previously along with arguments, directly Q&A with the Lithuanian Permanent Representative had been proffered and we hope to conduct and run it soon. Watch this site.
