Lovers of the musical “Hamilton” will remember lyrics from the song, “The Room Where It Happens.” In it, a young Aaron Burr declares his ambition to become a national leader. He wants to be a power broker, a deal maker, surrounded by the important figures of his day. Up until then, he’s been on the sidelines, outside looking in as treaties, laws and nations take shape. No more, he says. He wants to be “in the room where it happens.”
Today’s leaders, if they share similar aspirations, likely feel the same. Which would explain our frustration with France, China and Great Britain, whose leaders have skipped town and missed this week’s General Assembly of the United Nations in New York. If you want to lead, the first step is showing up.
The three countries join the United States and Russia to make up the five that hold veto power on the U.N. Security Council. We understand why Putin can’t make it to New York — that pesky International Criminal Court arrest warrant — but France’s President Macron, China’s Xi Jiping and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak have no excuse.
Their absence weakens this week’s General Assembly, the first full assembly since the pandemic. There are serious issues on the table: a war rages in Ukraine, climate change is ravaging the planet, and global hunger is on the rise. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters he wasn’t particularly worried about any specific leader’s absence. “This isn’t a vanity fair,” he said.
WE DISAGREE. Showing up matters. What in the world could Xi, Macron and Sunak be doing, anyways?
Well, Macron dined at the Palace of Versailles with King Charles Wednesday evening, enjoying a three-course meal of lobster, poached Bresse chicken, fine cheeses and a compote dessert. As diplomats huddle to tackle global poverty, Macron indulges in the work of France’s top chefs at the former home of Louis XIV. “Let them eat cake,” indeed. If you want to lead, the first step is showing up.
British prime minister Sunak has even fewer pretexts to explain skipping the summit. New to the position, this would be his first General Assembly since taking office and a welcome chance to meet global leaders. Instead, he becomes the first prime minister in over a decade to miss the event.
What has Sunak been up to? On Wednesday he gave a speech announcing his government will water down key green-energy commitments, further delaying Britain’s transition to net-zero emissions.
And Xi Jiping? At home preparing for buddy Putin’s visit next month. China’s top foreign policy official Wang Yi won’t go to New York either. Instead, Xi sent Vice President Han Zheng, who holds little power in a largely ceremonial role. Imagine sending a child’s older sibling to a parent-teacher conference in your place.
The Powerful Five, as they’re called, are major players in world affairs. Where they show up, that’s the “room where it happens.” Macron, Sunak and Xi don’t find the United Nations’ General Assembly very important. Their decision shows a grave lack of leadership.
INSTEAD of sitting across from Putin at an absurdly long table, or inviting a king with a fairly open social calendar, Macron needs to talk with democratic leaders. He needs to be in the room. Instead of punting on climate change, Sunak needs to hear how severe weather devastates his neighbors. And if China’s leaders demand to be treated as a new global power, they, again, need to be in the room.
In the short term, their absence this week gives more attention to President Joe Biden, who spoke at the General Assembly on Tuesday, and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Perhaps that’s good enough news for now; it allows the United States and our allies to focus on the issues they want.
But a weak United Nations benefits no one more than autocrats. Big international organizations are frustrating and messy, but they need to be “the room.” Otherwise, global affairs get decided in smoke-filled rooms and dark alleys. Or, as Hamilton lovers well know, by violence.
— Tim Stauffer
