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[NVMojo]

Weblog: Behind the Scenes at the U.N.

FRIDAY, March 3, 4 p.m. local

UNITED NATIONS

When U.S. Ambassador John Bolton took over the presidency of the U.N. Security Council for the month of February he decided to institute daily briefings on global hotspots. But now it's March and Argentina's U.N. Ambassador Cesar Mayoral is the new council president and he's decided to hold briefings only at the request of council members.

Bolton also decided to start council meetings promptly at 10 a.m. - even if a few of the 15 seats at the council table were empty. And he kept track of who showed up on time, and who was late. Mayoral, who comes from a region where punctuality isn't always a top priority, said he would try to be on time, but there won't be a time clock.

On Tuesday, the last day of his presidency, I asked Bolton whether he had any parting thoughts on the punctuality of the council, and the morning briefing.

"I think punctuality is just fine right now," he said. "And I think it can be sustained, and I think it should be sustained because I think it's polite, among other things, not to mention efficient."

"The council will have to make up its own mind on that and on the subject of the daily briefing, which I would also urge be continued, but that's really up to the rest of the council to decide," Bolton said.

It would probably be fair to say that nobody on the Security Council is opposed to being on time, but it would be equally fair to say that in the world of diplomacy at the United Nations, almost nothing starts on time.

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http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/nat-gen/2006/...