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US-China-Russia Rift Simmers at UN

Margaret Besheer

   NEW YORK - The growing rift between the United States and China and
   Russia was clearly evident on the sidelines of the U.N. General
   Assembly Thursday, threatening to overshadow international cooperation
   on the coronavirus response.

   This year's assembly has been held online because of the pandemic, and
   its focus has been on confronting COVID-19, the disease caused by the
   virus, through effective multilateral action.

   At a side event in the Security Council meant to complement that theme,
   U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed concern that the
   pandemic is unfolding against a backdrop of "high geopolitical
   tensions."

   "The pandemic is a clear test of international cooperation, a test we
   have essentially failed," Guterres told the videoconference of the
   U.N.'s most powerful body. Those tensions were on display in the
   council, as the foreign ministers of China and Russia referenced their
   divisions with the United States.

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