The US House of Representatives voted Thursday to withhold $244 million in UN arrears next year, striking back at the world body for its decision to oust the United States from a seat on a UN human rights panel. The move came despite warnings from the Bush administration that the action could scuttle a deal aimed at settling a long-running dispute over US debts to the United Nations, reported the Washington Post.
But the UN chief, Kofi Annan, blasted the decision, urging the US to meet its commitments, said reports.
The 252-165 vote was for a proposal that would allow Congress to pay $582 million in UN back dues this year, but suspend the next installment unless the United States regains its seat on the UN Human Rights Commission.
"This is a deliberate attempt to punish the United States for telling the truth when it comes to human rights violations around the globe," said Rep. Henry J. Hyde, chairman of the House International Relations Committee, who authored the proposal.
"To our critics who would say we're overreaching and overreacting, I would say to do anything less would be a repudiation of our values," Hyde said, according to the newspaper.
The proposal, which drew the support of 189 Republicans, 62 Democrats and one independent, underscored the depth of anger on Capitol Hill in the wake of last week's vote to remove the United States from its traditional seat on the human rights panel, as well as the degree to which many lawmakers remain uneasy with America's close ties to international organizations, said the paper – Albawaba.com
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