 "Photo: John Gilchrist")
Though it lacks military authority and is frequently divided by its quarreling members, the United Nations can play a major role in the global fight against terrorism, a counter-terrorism expert said Thursday.
The University's Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law invited Eric Rosand to be the first speaker of the semester in its ongoing International Security Speaker Series. Rosand served as chief of the State Department's Multilateral Affairs Unit for nine years, where he developed the U.S. government's counter-terrorism policies at the U.N.
"Logistically, the U.N. has no operational power, but it can be extremely effective in setting global norms and helping countries to implement global standards for counter-terrorism efforts," Rosand said during his speech at the LBJ Library.
Eugene Gholz, a public affairs associate professor, said he believes Rosand is a leading expert in the U.N.'s role in counter terrorism.
"These are issues we think have a direct impact on UT students. It is an opportunity for students to learn about important events in the world around them," Gholz said. "This lecture, in particular, should speak to lots of students who want to participate in counter-terrorism efforts."
For many years, the U.N. has been actively trying to fight terrorism. Before the Sept. 11 attacks, the U.N. had 12 different international treaties to combat terrorism, Rosand said.
"The U.N. lacks resources to have military presence and because of that is usually dismissed by the U.S. as an actor in the war on terror," he said.
The U.N. passed Resolution 1373 Sept. 28, 2001, the first comprehensive anti-terrorism policy to come from the General Assembly. This resolution established political and legal authority for counter-terrorism efforts and established a policy for states to combat terrorism.
"Since Resolution 1373 was passed, there has been a distinct rise in the number of countries adopting and drafting counter-terrorism legislation," Rosand said.
He proposed that the U.N. needs an intergovernmental body that allows a broader forum for counter-terrorism issues to be discussed and that includes far more countries.
One student said she agreed with Rosand's information, but found fault with his plan of
action.
"He is right about the U.N. being ill-equipped. It needs to play a role in the fight against terrorism, but right now, it's not equipped to play that role," said public affairs graduate student Amanda Towler.
She said she believes the U.N.'s multilateral nature could work in its favor because it could get solutions from an array of perspectives. Towler said she believes Rosand's idea of replacing the Security Council with a happy-medium group seems contradictory since it would have to exclude some countries.
Rosand said he believes there is a question mark concerning the U.N.'s ability to combat
terrorism.
"Hopefully, that question can soon be turned into a period," Rosand said.
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