Secretary General Kurt Waldheim warned the U.S. Congress today of the consequences that could result from its withholding of part of the United State contribution to the United Nations.
If one country did it, what was stop others from following? he said in a speech at the University of South Carolina. “It’s obvious. The only result would be financial chaos, as it would be in this or any other country if its citizens were to insist on paying taxes only for programs they liked.”
Congress last year put restrictions on the use of U.S. funds to pay for programs of the UN which promote the Palestinian cause. Waldheim said that if these restrictions were allowed to continue, “It would destroy the principle of collective financial responsibility and with it the economic and political viability of the entire UN system.” Most of the speech concerned a denial that the UN was wasteful in spending its funds.
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