18 Possible Reasons Why

Shortly after the United States withdrew from the Antiballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty,
Richard DuBoff of Z Magazine put together this list of international actions undertaken
by the United States in recent years. It may help us all to understand some of the
contributing factors to the way our nation is viewed from outside its borders.

1. The 1972 Antiballistic Missile Treaty. In December 2001, the United States officially
withdrew from the Treaty, gutting the landmark agreement-the first time in the
nuclear era that the U.S. renounced a major arms control accord.

2. Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention. Ratified in 1972 by 144 nations
including the United States. However, in July 2001 the U.S. walked out of a London
conference to discuss a 1994 protocol designed to strengthen the Convention by
providing for on-site inspections.

3. United Nations Agreement to Curb the International Flow of Illicit Small Arms.
Drafted in July 2001, the agreement was approved by everyone except the U.S.

4. UN Human Rights Commission. In April 2001, the U.S. was not reelected to the
Commission, after years of withholding dues to the UN (including then current dues
of $244 million) and after having forced the UN to lower the U.S. share of the UN
budget from 25 to 22 percent.

5. International Criminal Court (ICC) Treaty. Set up in The Hague to try political
leaders and military personnel charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Signed in Rome in July 1998, the Treaty was approved by 120 countries, with 7
opposed (including the U.S.).

6. Land Mine Treaty. Banning land mines, it was signed in Ottawa in December 1997
by 122 nations. The United States refused to sign, along with Russia, China, India,
Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, Vietnam, Egypt, and Turkey.

7. Kyoto Protocol of 1997, for controlling global warming. Declared "dead" by
President Bush in March 2001.

8. Economic espionage and electronic surveillance of phone calls, e-mail, and faxes.
In May 2001, the U.S. refused to meet with European Union nations to discuss these
issues, even at lower levels of government.

9. Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The U.S.
refused to participate in OECD-sponsored talks in Paris, May 2001, on ways to crack
down on off-shore and other tax and money-laundering havens.

10. Pledge by 123 nations to ban the use and production of anti-personnel bombs and
mines, February 2001. The U.S. refused to join.

11. International Plan for Cleaner Energy, July 2001. Out of the G-8 group of industrial
nations (U.S., Canada, Japan, Russia, Germany, France, Italy, UK), the U.S. was the
only one to oppose it.

12. UN General Assembly resolution calling for an end to the U.S. embargo of Cuba.
Passed in October 2001 for the tenth consecutive year by a vote of 167 to 3. The U.S., Israel, and the Marshall Islands opposed it.

13. Comprehensive [Nuclear] Test Ban Treaty. Signed by 164 nations and ratified by 89
including France, Great Britain, and Russia; signed by President Clinton in 1996, but
rejected by the Senate in 1999.

14. UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The U.S. has signed but not ratified this
1989 agreement, which protects the economic and social rights of children. The only
other country not to ratify is Somalia, which has no functioning government.

15. Optional Protocol to the UN's International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Passed in 1989 and aimed at abolition of the death penalty, and containing a provision
banning the execution of those under 18. The U.S. has neither signed nor ratified, and
specifically exempts itself from the latter provision, making it one of five countries
that still execute juveniles (along with Saudi Arabia, Democratic Republic of Congo,
Iran, and Nigeria). China abolished the practice in 1997, Pakistan in 2000.

16. 1979 UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against
Women. The only countries that have signed but not ratified are the U.S.,
Afghanistan, Sao Tome, and Principe.

17. International Court of Justice (The Hague). In 1986 the Court ruled that the U.S.
was in violation of international law for "unlawful use of force" in Nicaragua through
its actions and those of its Contra proxy army. The U.S. refused to recognize the
Court's jurisdiction. A UN resolution calling for compliance with the Court's
decision was approved 94-2 with only the U.S. and Israel voting no.

18. Measured by the percentage of their gross domestic product contributed to foreign
aid, the three highest providers are Denmark (1.01%), Norway (0.91%), and the
Netherlands (0.79%). The lowest are Australia, Portugal, and Austria (all 0.26%), UK
(0.23%), and the U.S. (0.10%).