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At UN as Ban Fetes Le Roy, Bonnafont as Successor Scoop by Press Confirmed by 2 & Griped Of by More

By Matthew Russell Lee

UNITED NATIONS, July 25 -- While outgoing UN Peacekeeping chief Alain Le Roy was being toasted by Secretary General Ban Ki-moon at a Monday night reception thrown by French ambassador Gerard Araud, across town two separate ambassadors confirmed Inner City Press' July 5 story naming Le Roy's successor: Jerome Bonnafont.

   That Bonnafont is also French, when France is hardly a major troop contributing country, has been more and more noticed by other member states of the UN. “Does France own DPKO?” one Permanant Representative asked. The answer appears to be yes.

  When Ban Ki-moon became Secretary General he spoke of reform and meritocracy. But posts like that atop the Department of Peacekeeping Operations are held for particular states, seemingly without regard to the job experience of the person they put forward.


Bonnafont at Men's Fashion Week in New Delhi, 9/11/09

  What are Bonnafont's military credentials? Who in the UN system is reviewing them? There are questions not only for the French, but for Ban Ki-moon and others. Watch this site.

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With Le Roy To Leave UN Within 6 Weeks, Bonnafont As Next French Peacekeeping Chief, Sources Tell Press

By Matthew Russell Lee, Exclusive

UNITED NATIONS, July 5 -- On the day France was questioned in the Security Council about arguably violating Council resolutions 1970 and 1973 in Libya, the name of a French diplomat to replace Alain Le Roy as head of UN Peacekeeping was leaked to Inner City Press: Jerome Bonnafont.

  Weeks before Le Roy announced he will leave on or before August 23, Inner City Press reported that he would leave. At the time, the favorite to replace him was Eric Chevalier, an aide to Bernard Kouchner in Kosovo.

  Some pointed out riffs between Kouchner and President Sarkozy, and Chevalier's lack of military experience. One senior UN official said of Chevalier, “It would be a disaster.” For that reason or not, well placed sources in the UN North Lawn building say the new name is Jerome Bonnafont.

  Bonnafont has served most recently as French Ambassador to India, and before that as Spokesman to to President of the French Republic. Like Chevalier, he has no visible military experience.

  While in India, he puffed up France's involvement in Afghanistan. He has paraded at Men's Fashion Week in New Delhi on September 11, 2009. The sources describe Bonnafont as an “order taker.” But from where? Watch this site.

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On Libya, After France Brags of Breaking Embargo, It Says Others Like Qatar Can Too: Russia “Expected” to Pursue

By Matthew Russell Lee

UNITED NATIONS, July 5, updated -- After bragging about air-dropping weapons to rebels in Western Libya, France now claims that others can step in. French Defense Minister Gerard Longuet was quoted July 5 that the rebels' “autonomy allows them to establish relations with external partners, including when it comes to equipping themselves in self-defense.”

  There is a UN Security Council arms embargo on Libya, on all sides of the conflict. Inner City Press on Tuesday morning outside the Council asked the chairman of the Libya Sanctions committee, Portugal's Permanent Representative Cabral, if there has been any move to consider if France's admitted actions violated the embargo.

  “We are expecting the Russians to raise it today,” Cabral told Inner City Press before going back into the Council for a closed door meeting, initially on July's program of work under the new German presidency.


Sarkozy glad-hands Ban, notification under Reso 1973 and top DPKO post not shown

  Since France's admission, Gaddafi's forces say they have intercepted weapons from Qatar meant for the rebels. With Qatar having just acquired the Presidency of the UN General Assembly, among other posts and events, things could get interesting. Watch this site.

Update of 11:52 am -- after the consultations broke up, Western sources said that French ambassador Gerard Araud argued at length why dropped arms into Libya is “notwithstanding” legal, and claimed there was little opposition. The Russian delegation told Inner City Press “we cannot agree,” and said they asked Libya sanctions chair Cabral to convene a meeting of the committee.

Cabral himself told Inner City Press that no meeting has been scheduled and he doubts that one will before UN part time envoy Al Khatib comes to brief the Security Council on July 11. We'll see.

Update of 12:52 pm -- At German Permanent Representative Wittig's 12:30 press conference about the Security Council's program of work during his month as president, Inner City Press asked him about the morning's closed door consultations at which France's dropping of weapons was discussed. He acknowledged it was discussed but said that there was “no agreement.”

So even a meeting of the Sanctions Committee on this issue was blocked? July 11 will be al Khatib.

Click for Mar 1, '11 BloggingHeads.tv re Libya, Sri Lanka, UN Corruption

Click here for Inner City Press' March 27 UN debate

Click here for Inner City Press March 12 UN (and AIG bailout) debate

Click here for Inner City Press' Feb 26 UN debate

Click here for Feb. 12 debate on Sri Lanka http://bloggingheads.tv/diavlogs/17772?in=11:33&out=32:56

Click here for Inner City Press' Jan. 16, 2009 debate about Gaza

Click here for Inner City Press' review-of-2008 UN Top Ten debate

Click here for Inner City Press' December 24 debate on UN budget, Niger

Click here from Inner City Press' December 12 debate on UN double standards

Click here for Inner City Press' November 25 debate on Somalia, politics

and this October 17 debate, on Security Council and Obama and the UN.

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These reports are usually also available through Google News and on Lexis-Nexis.

Click here for a Reuters AlertNet piece by this correspondent about Uganda's Lord's Resistance Army. Click here for an earlier Reuters AlertNet piece about the Somali National Reconciliation Congress, and the UN's $200,000 contribution from an undefined trust fund.  Video Analysis here

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