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The screams you heard emanating from Turtle Bay earlier this week were overseas diplomats learning that President-elect Donald Trump would appoint Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) to beryllium his ambassador to the United Nations.
If anyone tin combat backmost against the anti-Americanism and antisemitism wrong the UN system, it’s Stefanik.
Her archetypal halt volition beryllium the UN Security Council. As a imperishable member, the United States holds some a veto and the powerfulness to convene.
Stefanik should usage them successful ways the Biden medication ne'er did.
The Biden squad lived successful fearfulness of wielding America’s veto, viewing its deployment arsenic a nonaccomplishment of diplomacy, and searched alternatively for compromises that diluted his ain administration’s argumentation positions.
That enactment the United States connected defence portion Russia and China — unafraid to usage their ain veto powers whenever needed — went connected offense.
In a cesspool of anti-American actors searching for immoderate space to harm our country, Stefanik should beryllium unafraid to usage each instrumentality to combat back.
That starts with a steadfast backstop — letting adversaries cognize the United States volition beryllium unflinching successful its usage of the veto — but continues by waging an violative run against those adversaries.
With the powerfulness to convene and present resolutions, some Trump and Sen. Marco Rubio, reportedly his prime for caput of state, should presumption Stefanik arsenic their extremity of the spear successful governmental warfare against America’s enemies.
No period should walk without the assembly shining a airy connected the illicit behaviour of China, Russia, Iran, North Korea and their cardinal partners successful chaos. China and Russia should beryllium forced to veto resolutions defending their ain malign activities and those of their clients and allies.
For example, alternatively of waiting for yet different anti-Israel solution to travel earlier the assembly for a US veto, Stefanik mightiness unit a ballot connected the UN designation of Hamas arsenic a violent organization.
Let Beijing and Moscow openly support a brutal violent radical by utilizing their vetoes to halt it.
The aforesaid tin beryllium done to spotlight different panic proxies of Iran — specified arsenic the Houthis and their attacks connected planetary shipping successful the Red Sea — and China’s and Russia’s ain crimes against humanity.
If, arsenic expected, Trump reconstitutes his maximum unit run against Iran, Stefanik has an aboriginal relation to play: Pushing the United Kingdom, France and Germany to articulation the United States successful triggering the snapback of multilateral sanctions connected Iran.
Using the snapback mechanics earlier it expires adjacent twelvemonth would bring backmost the UN’s accepted and rocket embargoes connected Tehran and reconstruct the planetary modular of zero enrichment for Iran portion avoiding a Russian oregon Chinese veto.
Next comes leveraging American fiscal assistance crossed the UN strategy to basal retired Chinese malign influence, antagonistic antisemitism and halt dollars from flowing to violent groups.
Stefanik should found a run “war room” to enlistee pro-American candidates to tally UN agencies and decision candidates loyal to Beijing. She should besides marque it a precedence to place and region Chinese officials embedded successful UN precocious management.
For example, the World Health Organization denies Taiwan perceiver presumption and besides conceals the origins of COVID-19. Agencies similar the Food and Agriculture Organization and UNESCO run arsenic arms of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative. The Human Rights Council whitewashes China’s abuses.
All these agencies should beryllium precocious connected her people list.
She should marque definite to support US dominance wrong exertion standards-making organizations similar the International Telecommunication Union — and to summation much leverage implicit Beijing, Stefanik tin importune that Taiwan beryllium fixed an perceiver spot astatine each US-supported UN agency.
Stefanik should state different policy: Any bureau that engages successful antisemitism volition not person a dime from the US taxpayer.
That includes the UN’s ain regular budget, noting the systemic antisemitism of a satellite assemblage that lowers its emblem for the decease of Iran’s president but does not condemn Oct. 7.
It besides applies to groups similar the Human Rights Council and WHO, which person lasting docket items to castigate Israel; UNESCO, which denies Jewish history; and the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), which teaches children successful Gaza and the West Bank to hatred Jews.
UNRWA should beryllium targeted for different reason: It is simply a nonstop fiscal pipeline to designated violent organizations similar Hamas. But temporarily defunding UNRWA isn’t enough; Stefanik should enactment toward its implicit dismantlement.
Terror-finance problems are not constricted to Hamas. Stefanik volition request to motorboat an probe into UN backing successful Afghanistan, wherever the Taliban is reportedly stealing a sizable stock of aid.
There’s 1 different cardinal country successful which Stefanik indispensable assistance Trump: borderline security.
As border czar Tom Homan works to summation power of America’s confederate border, helium volition request Stefanik to unit agencies similar UN Migration and the High Commissioner for Refugees to halt incentivizing amerciable migration into the United States.
If she follows this America First UN playbook, Stefanik won’t beryllium fashionable astatine Manhattan cocktail parties. But she volition win successful making our state stronger.
Richard Goldberg is simply a elder advisor astatine the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
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