And Now, Iran as a Vice President of the UN General Assembly

Not that the United Nations is advertising the fact, but Anne Bayefsky has the story. As the UN prepares for Durban III this September in NY, Iran– yes, you read that right, Iran –  has just been elected as a vice president of the next UN General Assembly, the 66th session, which will run from Sept. 2011-Sept. 2012.

This is the same Iran that since 2006 has come under a series of binding sanctions from the UN Security Council over its rogue nuclear projects; the same Iranian regime whose security forces slaughtered Iranian protesters in the streets in 2009, the same Iranian regime whose leaders propose death to Israel, celebrate the vision of a world without the U.S., and run terrorist networks enjoying global reach.

The UN and assorted diplomats like to downplay the importance of such posts as General Assembly vice-president as mainly ceremonial; there are 20 such vice-presidents at a given time ( you can find the full roster , way down at the bottom, at this UN link). But at the UN, these positions do mean something. There are 192 member states of the UN, competing for various slots involved in running the organization. Positions such as UN General Assembly vice president provide both enhanced prestige and access to a whole array of UN doings. And of all the gin joints in all the world, the UN General Assembly, with 22% of its budget bankrolled by US. taxpayers, has just picked Iran as one of its vice presidents. Anyone bothered yet?