Secretary of State Antony Blinken again recommended the US to rejoin the United Nations Human Rights Council on Wednesday, three years after former President Donald Trump withdrew because of what his administration called bias against Israel.
“I am here to reaffirm America’s commitment to respecting and defending the human rights of all people everywhere,” Blinken said in a video address at the meeting of the main UN human rights organization.
It is the final step by President Joe Biden’s administration to reverse Trump’s legacy of abandoning international agreements and organizations.
Blinken said the United States was seeking support for their election to the council for the 2022-24 term. Elections will be held in October at the UN General Assembly for the three-year membership of the council of 47 members.
Trump pulled the US out of the international body in 2018 after repeated threats to leave – a move Blinken previously said created “ a vacuum of American leadership. ” Trump’s ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, at the time called the Council’s “chronic bias against Israel” for the US withdrawal, calling it “hypocritical and selfish.”
The Trump administration and other critics also said the council was quick to overlook abuses by autocratic regimes and governments.
On Wednesday, Blinken praised the council’s reputation and “meaningful role” in protecting fundamental freedoms, but called on the UN body to look at “how it does business,” including its “disproportionate focus on Israel.”
“We need to drop agenda item 7 and treat the human rights situation in Israel and the Palestinian Territories in the same way that this body treats any other country,” Blinken said.
Israel, a close ally of the US, is the only country in the world whose track record is up for discussion at every council meeting, under “Item 7” on the agenda. As a result, “Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories” has been part of the day-to-day work of the council at every meeting since shortly after the council was established in 2006.
Blinken also urged the council to ensure that its membership reflects its mission. “Those with the worst human rights record should not be members of this Council,” he said.
The organization’s membership currently includes China, Cuba, Eritrea, Russia and Venezuela, all of which have been accused of violations by human rights organizations.
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Earlier this month, Blinken said Biden had instructed the State Department to “promptly and firmly re-engage” with the Human Rights Council and that the US was returning as an observer.
Biden has so far rejoined several international treaties and organizations, including the Paris Climate Agreement and the World Health Organization – both of which were shunned by Trump. The Biden administration has also said it was ready for talks with Iran on a nuclear deal that Trump had also left in 2018.
In his speech, Blinken pledged to denounce abuse in Venezuela, Nicaragua, Cuba and Iran, and reiterated the US’s call to Russia to release opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who has been imprisoned since earlier this month. Blinken also spoke about repression against Uyghurs in Xinjiang, suppression of fundamental freedoms in Hong Kong, the coup in Myanmar and human rights violations in North Korea.
Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
