[JURIST] The US has strongly criticized a new UN draft of proposed UN reforms, complaining that the document is too long, poorly put together, and not responsive to American concerns. While the draft is far from being voted on, the US criticisms could predict areas of future dispute. US Deputy Ambassador Anne Patterson [official profile] criticized the document [press release] released Tuesday for focusing more on disarmament than non-proliferation and not sufficiently advancing a development policy based upon democracy and free markets. She again voiced the Bush administration's opposition to the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty [official website, Wikipedia backgrounder], called for a "smaller, more effective Human Rights Council", and emphasized the importance of UN management reform. She also urged the G-4, African Union and Uniting for Consensus groups to

defer the tabling of Security Council expansion resolutions, to stop pushing for votes, and to focus first on more urgently needed reforms. The Security Council debate has indeed siphoned extensive resources and attention away from more critical UN reforms.