By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
May 18 -- In a
loss of face
for Ban
Ki-moon's UN,
neither
Ban nor any
other UN
official has
been invited
to the G8
meeting on
food security
in Africa
convened by
the Obama
administration,
it
emerged on
Friday.
Inner
City Press
asked Ban's
spokesman
Martin Nesirky
about an
inserting into
the
transcript of
remarks by
Syria envoy
Kofi Annan's
spokesman,
that
"Ban Ki-moon
will be
attending both
meetings. [It
has later
transpired
that
Secretary-General
Ban Ki-moon
will
participate in
the
NATO summit
but would not
attend the G8
meeting.]"
Did
this mean Ban
had been
invited to the
G8 but now
wouldn't go?
Nesirky argued
that
Ban can
discuss not
only Rio + 20
but also food
security at
the NATO
summit in
Chicago.
But
with "food
security in
Africa" being
such a UN
topic, why no
UN
involvement?
The presidents
of Ghana,
Benin,
Tanzania and
Ethiopia
will be there;
USAID officail
Raj Shah held
a press call
and praised
the work of
corporate
behemoth
Dupont.
On
the same call
Deputy
National
Security
Advisor for
International
Economic
Affairs
Mike Froman
said of Obama
that he "also
invited some
representatives
of the private
sector from
Africa and,
more
generally, who
are active in
agriculture or
in investing
in
agriculture."
But no UN --
this says a
lot.
Meanwhile
the US
stands pointed
to send its
official
Jeffrey
Feltman to
take over
Ban's
Department of
Political
Affairs, as
Inner City
Press
exclusively
reported. This
is drawing
more and more
complaints.
Also to Camp
David for the
G8 is new
French
president
Francois
Hollande.
Meanwhile the
French Mission
to the UN
announced that
Hollande's
foreign
minister
Laurent Fabius
will meet with
Ban on
Saturday
(though it is
not on Ban's
schedule).
Will Hollande
and Fabius
move to switch
not only UN
Ambassador
Gerard
Araud, but
also the
uncommunicative
Sarkozy
nominee UN
Peacekeeping
chief Herve
"The Drone"
Ladsous? Watch
this site.
