UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon had a diplomatic disastrous interview with the Washington Post.
The piece about it is mostly a write up and not a transcript. We must thereby assume that the Washington Post, not always knows for accuracy, might have edited some of the quotes out of context. Still it is incredible that the UN Secretary General would allow such to be published:
The United Nations must be decisive and swift in judging whether diplomacy can resolve world concerns about Iran’s nuclear program, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Thursday, or invite the risk that Iran, like North Korea, will use talks as a cover to build a bomb.
In an interview with The Washington Post, Ban said he wants to accelerate diplomatic talks with Iran and give them new urgency.
…
“We should not give much more time to the Iranians, and we should not waste time,” Ban said. “We have seen what happened with the DPRK.”
Ban Ki Moon will know the repeatedly confirmed united opinion of all 16 U.S. intelligence agencies that Iran does not have a nuclear weapon program. How can he then, as the head of the organization which is tasked keep the world at peace, talk such a nonsense?
The U.N. Security Council must “show a firm, decisive and effective, quick response,” Ban said, that makes plain to Iran that the rest of the world is not convinced that it is not seeking nuclear weapons.
What is that? A call for war against Iran for weapons of mass destruction that do not exist?
Has Ban Ki Moon additional brain defects?
The WaPo commentators to that piece are not amused:
"SharpDiamond" wrote:
It seems the UN secretary general Mr "Moon" has stopped taking his meds. What is WHO doing?
"justnfree" concludes:
I guess that shows how neutral UN is. Any word about Israeli nuclear arsenal?
The former Indian ambassador K.P. Fabian remarks:
The UN SG is talking through his hat.
He wants to ensure that the forthcoming talks will be fruitless by threatening and abusing Iran.
Why not start bombing?
Sad that UN SG is advocating war!
Ambassador K P Fabian
I hope that Ban Ki Moon will hear likewise from other diplomats, especially from Sergej Lavrov and his Chinese colleague.
Apropos Lavrov – here is a one hour interview (in English) with the Russian foreign minister about Syria by the German public TV station ARD. (If you do want to listen to the full hour skip to the last 8 or 10 minutes.) (Edit with thanks to Parviziyi: English transcript) Lavrov shows that he has, unlike Ban Ki Moon, the knowledge of details, the thoughtfulness and strategic perspective any real diplomat should have.
