Inner City Press -- Investigative Reporting From the United Nations to Wall Street to the Inner City

On Ukraine Asking For DPKO, UN Says No Official Request, Won't Deny Meetings

By Matthew Russell Lee

UNITED NATIONS, March 20 -- Ukraine's request(s) to the UN for peacekeepers remain shrouded in mystery, seemingly intentionally so.

 On March 20 UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq said, “At this stage, we have not received what is considered an official request, no" -- then declined to explain what an official request would be.

 But Haq also declined to deny what Ukraine had said the day before, that on March 20 there would be consultations with the UN Secretariat about peacekeepers. Before and after questions on the UN's "Happiness Day" music choices -- Ban Ki-moon chose Stevie Wonder -- Haq was asked, No consultations?

  Haq said, "that's not necessarily the case. We are in touch on a number of issues. The position is that right now our policy is to focus on the full implementation of the February 12 package of measures.” Right now.

  What explains this careful parsing? What constitutes, for the UN, an official request? Relatedly, as Inner City Press asked Haq on March 20, how and by whom are waivers requested and granted (or denied) to the UN's Human Rights Due Diligence Policy, as happened in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as to the FDLR, here? It's not “Rights Up Front” - it's “Rights in the Dark,” now “Peacekeeping in the Dark.” Watch this site.