Ambassador Nikki Haley met yesterday with Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. The two discussed a number of countries with deteriorating human rights situations, and Ambassador Haley underscored that human rights remains a core element of U.S. foreign policy.
Ambassador Haley and High Commissioner al-Hussein also discussed last month’s historic UN Security Council thematic meeting on human rights organized during the U.S. presidency of the Security Council. They agreed on the indisputable link between human rights and some of the world’s most devastating conflicts and the critical role of the UN Security Council in raising human rights concerns that threaten international peace and security.
Ambassador Haley encouraged the High Commissioner to help counter the Human Rights Council’s obsession with Israel. She conveyed her concerns that Council members exploit what should be the world’s premier rights body to promote their anti-Israel agenda, diverting attention from some of the worst human rights abusers including Syria, Iran, North Korea, and Venezuela.