US interests can’t dictate UN agenda

The general debate of the 74th UN General Assembly will start Tuesday. On Sunday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo vilified China’s policy on the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in a meeting with the foreign ministers of five Central Asian countries. He accused China of attempting “to erase” minority cultures and religions and called on all countries to resist China’s demands to repatriate the Uyghurs. The US also noted that US President Donald Trump may mention the Xinjiang question at the general debate.

The UN General Assembly is held in New York, and thus US political elite like Pompeo think the general assembly would agree to whatever the US says. Pompeo may have forgotten that in addition to the US, only 22 Western countries publicly criticized China’s policy in Xinjiang, while at least 51 countries openly showed their support for China. Those who lashed at China’s policies in Xinjiang are only a small part of the UN.

Washington’s elite arrogantly declare that their human rights concept is universal. They do not admit that conflicts between their human rights concept and the diverse reality have created destructive side effects. When Pompeo spoke on the Xinjiang question, most people saw him as a Western centralist and an arrogant interventionist.

The five Central Asian countries are close to Xinjiang and member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). The SCO aims to fight terrorism and extremism, which is in line with the governance in Xinjiang. The five foreign ministers acted politely during the meeting, but if Pompeo has some political acumen, he should know that his pitch was repugnant to them.

The UN is not a Western organization and has no obligation to expand US interests. The US has provided the venue for the UN and is the largest financial contributor to the UN. The US has profited enough for being the site of the UN’s permanent headquarters. The US could ask the UN to move out of the country if Washington feels wronged. But the UN does not owe the US anything, nor will the UN Charter be dominated by the US Constitution or interests.

The themes of this UN General Assembly include “climate action.” The US should be blamed during this year’s general assembly because it has been jeopardizing the globe’s actions on climate change. Washington should not use the Xinjiang question to distract the attention of the international community. It is hoped that public opinion of the European countries will not be tricked by Pompeo. Climate action is a common issue of humanity that European countries have been promoting, and Washington betrayed Europe on the issue. If European countries are effortlessly led to focus on Xinjiang during the upcoming general debate of UN General Assembly, then Washington can fool Europe easily.

More than 20 million people of all ethnic groups live in Xinjiang, and their security, public welfare and living standards have improved there. When terrorism and extremism spread in the region, restoring Xinjiang’s order is the priority of human rights. Some US and Western forces advocate so-called human rights while deviating from real human rights. Most of the countries clearly see this.

Consequently, the US and a few Western countries have failed to rope in the numerous developing countries to criticize China’s Xinjiang policies. The US and those Western countries have lost the war of morality and justice.