U.S. Explanations of Positions on UNGA 80 Third Committee Resolutions

"During the 80th Session of the General Assembly, the United States is focusing on getting the UN back to basics—delivering on its core mission: maintaining international peace and security. To be clear, the United States is not walking away from the multilateral system.  We are determined to make it work as it was intended.  That means moving away from bloated, ideological multilateralism and toward practical reforms that make this institution leaner, more effective, and accountable to the nations that fund it.  We welcome partners willing to take that journey with us.

The United States was a driving force behind the UN’s creation and remains its largest contributor. But we’ve never believed that multilateral organizations are an end in and of themselves. They must serve the interests of the sovereign nations, and the people of those nations, that built them. The UN exists to help countries solve problems – not to impose global governance.

Too often, the UN has drifted from its original purpose. It has grown slow, politicized, and distracted by agendas that have little to do with peace, prosperity, or accountability. It’s time for bold reform. American taxpayers deserve to see results.  So do the people of the world.

We will continue to hold the UN and its Member States to the highest standards.  The United States will firmly oppose any effort to politicize the work of this Committee or undermine the UN’s credibility.

As President Trump has said, the UN has tremendous potential—but it has fallen far short.  In too many cases, it has not solved the problems it was created to fix—and sometimes, it has created new ones.

That is why, in the Third Committee this year, the United States has engaged selectively.  We will not lend our name to resolutions that recycle the same divisive or irrelevant issues year after year.  The United States has taken a much more pragmatic approach to negotiations this year. It is unclear what many of these resolutions accomplish beyond the performative exercise of UN politicking, while failing our collective citizenry to meaningfully improve their lives.

This year, delegations spent countless hours negotiating symbolic text–with little to show in tangible results that materially improve the lives of the common citizen. Many delegations have expressed dismay over these resolutions, even nations that have historically disagreed with the United States, sharing our frustration over this performative exercise. While the United States participated in a more streamlined fashion this year in good faith, in future iterations, we will be taking action to end this practice of performative resolutions. This annual exercise cannot continue in its current state, and we urge fellow delegations to consider their role in these negotiations. The United States is about taking action to solve the world’s problems, not simply talking about them in endless mired bureaucratic debates.

The United States stands ready to work with any nation that shares our goal: to restore the UN’s work to serving its founding purpose and ensure it delivers real results for the nations and people it serves. We stand ready to cooperate on shared concerns, solutions, and reforms.

Resolutions on Which the United States Refrained from Negotiation

Per above, the United States has not and will not expend its resources engaging in negotiation on resolutions that either do not sufficiently align with the UN’s original scope and purpose or that veer unnecessarily into politicized debates disconnected from advancing peace, prosperity, and accountability.  Instead, the United States disengaged from negotiating such resolutions.  Our disengagement from negotiation and decision to vote against such resolutions did not signal an argument over the merits of certain noble causes – but rather rejects the performative exercise that does not actually do anything to sustain progress on said cause. The specific resolutions on which the United States has refrained from negotiation and voted “no” include:
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xxxviii) The right of the Palestinian people to self-determination
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