US slams rights groups, says aided its withdrawal from UN body
UNITED NATIONS - US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley slammed rights groups on Wednesday for thwarting Washington's attempts to reform the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council and said they had contributed to the Trump administration's decision to withdraw.
In a letter to at least 17 rights and aid groups, seen by Reuters, Haley berated them for urging countries not to support a US-drafted General Assembly resolution titled "Improving the Effectiveness of the Human Rights Council."
"It is unfortunate that your letter sought to undermine our attempts to improve the Human Rights Council. You put yourself on the side of Russia and China, and opposite the United States, on a key human rights issue," Haley wrote.
"You should know that your efforts to block negotiations and thwart reform were a contributing factor in the US decision to withdraw from the council," she said in the letter that was received by groups including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International.
