Rosemary DiCarlo, the highest-ranking US official at the UN, is the first person to lead the newly created Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs. Being the first woman in the post, she said, is a “heavy burden,” as she acts as a model for aspiring men and women at the organization. JOE PENNEY
The UNA-USA shop in Palo Alto, Calif., is run by a local UNA chapter. Its success in selling artisanal goods from mostly the developing world is not only due to the products’ uniqueness and quality but also because the store is operated by volunteers. DULCIE LEIMBACH
Kelly Knight Craft, the US envoy to the UN, leads the Security Council in December. She said she wanted to restore “credibility” to the Council. MARK GARTEN/UN PHOTO
GLASGOW, Kentucky — “There’s no place like home for the holidays” is the United States’ theme for the Security Council presidency in December, while at the same time, in a slight contradiction, the US wants to tackle the problem of the Council’s credibility.
The chorus of New York City’s Public School 22 performing at the General Assembly celebration marking the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Nov. 29, 2019. The US and five other countries that make up the bulk of dues to the UN general budget are behind on payments, some for years. MARK GARTEN/UN PHOTO
President Trump with UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, at the 74th session of the General Assembly, Sept. 24, 2019. Melania Trump is in the center. The US is blocking progress on women’s reproductive rights globally. ARIANA LINDQUIST/UN PHOTO
It did not take long after the 74th General Assembly session opened this fall for the Trump team to signal that its strategy in key United Nations meetings would be to act as uncooperative and obstructive as possible, especially on human-rights agendas.
Nikki Haley, at the State Department, June 19, 2018, as the United States announced its withdrawal from the Human Rights Council. The reviewer of her new book says that it “brims with love for the commander in chief” and that she brags about her advice to him.
Kelly Knight Craft speaks to the media after her first day in the UN Security Council as US ambassador, Sept. 12, 2019. As her country assumes the rotating presidency of the Council in December, Knight Craft is planning a Council trip to her home state of Kentucky. ESKINDER DEBEBE
While most countries use their presidency in the United Nations Security Council to visit war zones and pivotal peacekeeping missions around the globe, the United States ambassador, Kelly Knight Craft, is taking her counterparts to her home state of Kentucky in December.
Refugees, above, from the territory of Western Sahara have been living in Tindouf, Algeria, for decades. Western Sahara is the last colonial outpost in Africa, now occupied by Morocco. Former US National Security Adviser John Bolton tried to resolve the situation, but his departure from the White House leaves the territory’s future seriously adrift, the author says.
William vanden Heuvel, a former US envoy to the UN, helped set up the Franklin Roosevelt International Disability Rights Award, among the many roles he has played in his life related to the world body. Here, he awards the prize to Queen Sofía of Spain on behalf of her country, Sept. 9, 2013. PAULO FILGUERIAS/UN PHOTO
President Putin’s first Russia-Africa summit, held in the Black Sea city of Sochi this month, showcased Russian-made weapons and other goods and services. As for the big picture, the summit projected Russia’s intent to return as an influencer in Africa, building on Soviet-era alliances there. JOE PENNEY
