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TONY JONES [Lateline host]: Australia's former ambassador to the United Nations, Richard Butler, has accused the United States Government of 'terrorism' over its plans to abandon United Nations targets to reduce global poverty. The US has moved 750 amendments to a draft declaration on the United Nations millennium development goals, which aim to alleviate global poverty by 2015. The Federal Government is being urged to fight the amendments, but it says it believes the US is negotiating in good faith. Hamish Fitzsimmons reports.

HAMISH FITZSIMMONS: Ten years ago, as Australia's ambassador to the United Nations, Richard Butler, chaired meetings which led to a declaration to reduce world poverty. Now the United States has moved 750 amendments to that declaration, which Mr Butler has responded to in a typically blunt manner.

RICHARD BUTLER, FORMER AUSTRALIAN AMBASSADOR TO THE UN: They're trying to destroy the document. 10 years ago I chaired the 50th anniversary of the UN and the Syrians were the terrorists. They tried to destroy the document on the 50th. This time, the 60th anniversary, the terrorists seeking to destroy a declaration of all countries agreeing with each other is the United States.

HAMISH FITZSIMMONS: World leaders, including the Prime Minister John Howard, meet next week to endorse a final declaration on the so-called millennium development goals agreed on in 2000. These set measurable targets for health, human rights, AIDS, the environment, education, and reducing poverty by 2015. The proposed US amendments seek to delete the use of the phrase "millennium development goals" in any declaration from the summit next week. US ambassador John Bolton says his country does not support the subsidiary targets and indicators in the package. The 11th hour moves have alarmed aid groups, who are urging the Australian Government to fight the amendments.

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[ 08 September 2005: Message edited by: Hephaestion ]

Honestly, the current government is so socially disinterested and has such a stranglehold over the Senate that I can barely raise the energy to agitate at all because it seems to be completely pointless.

*sigh*