Ban Ki-moon is taking a lot of trips.
Registan.net has details of the trip in Uzbekistan, including a list of agreements signed. The Korea Times reports that this included a $30m loan for IT training. Is Mr. Ban passing out foreign aid to gather support?
Given that he has the support of North Korea and Egypt, two other human rights violators, one also wonders what his stands are on human rights. How does he feel about Human Rights Council reforms?
Next he goes to Europe. Pravda says:
Ban will begin his tour of Europe on Thursday, which will take him to Austria , Denmark , Greece , Slovakia and the Vatican . At the Vatican , Ban said he will deliver an invitation from South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun for the pope to visit South Korea . Ban has also been traveling recently as part of his campaign for the position of U.N. secretary-general.
This is transparently a campaign trip. Greece, Slovakia, and Denmark are on the Security Council. Austria is the current President of the EU. And the Vatican is an opinion leader in the Catholic world, including Latin America.
The Korean press is also reporting a trip to Morocco in the future.
We imagine that Sathirathai will have a more restricted travel schedule. What about Deva and Dhanapala?
April 10, 2006 at 3:58 pm
[...] Just days before Ban Ki-moon visits Russia, it appears that Russia is making its ideas known. There are two important parts of this. First, this article reports that Russia is actively attacking the Eastern European candidates for Secretary General. Second, this article reaffirms that they are backing an Asian. [...]
April 14, 2006 at 4:53 pm
[...] Fortunately, it was leavened with a request for more favorable conditions. He did no such thing in Uzbekistan where he offered a $30m loan. [...]
June 1, 2006 at 12:19 pm
[...] This appears to be Ban's modus operandi. He flies in, offers foreign aid, and gets collects support. This is what he did in Uzbekistan also. offered a similar proposal to Uzbekistan which subsequently offered its endorsement. And he offered nuclear technology to Indonesia. [...]
June 5, 2006 at 2:02 pm
[...] Of course, Ghana is a Security Council member. We have reported before here, here, and here on Ban's campaign trips. By our estimates, Ban has promised $48 million in foreign aid to Uzbekistan ($30 million), Tanzania ($18 million), and promises for other exchanges with other countries. This is the second promise of foreign aid to an African Security Council member. [...]
June 13, 2006 at 9:12 pm
[...] With respect to the UNSG race, SCO is a regional grouping without a candidate for UNSG. (ASEAN has Sathirathai. SAARC has Dhanapala, Tharoor, and Deva. And the various Middle East organizations have Prince Zaid. In some sense, Ban Ki-moon is a candidate without a supportive grouping) So far, Uzbekistan has endorsed Ban Ki-moon. Our understanding is that the Kazahks have been quietly advocating for another candidate. This could be an important opportunity for surrogates to discuss their candidates. However, unlike NAM, ACD, and other recent ministerials, there will only be a handleful of countries represented. [...]
June 16, 2006 at 6:58 pm
[...] We do note that this formulation excludes human rights or even development from the role of the UN. This is quite fascinating. Of course, with Uzbekistan (which has been known to boil people, kick out the UNHCR, and still endorse Ban Ki-moon for UNSG), Russia, and China as members, human rights might be a problem. Indeed, Human Rights Watch comments on the human rights issues in SCO. [...]