US President George W. Bush has accepted the resignation of John
Bolton, US ambassador to the United Nations, the White House said
on Monday.
Bush reluctantly accepted Bolton's decision to leave the post
when his recess appointment ended in early January, White House
spokeswoman Dana Perino said.?
Bush appointed Bolton to the UN job temporarily in August 2005
as his nomination languished in the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee, blocked by the Democrats and several Republicans.
However, the appointment expires when Congress formally adjourns,
no later than early January.
The CNN news network said that Bolton submitted his resignation
letter to Bush on Friday after realizing that his nomination would
face harsher prospects in the Congress following Democrat victories
in the midterm legislative elections.
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Monday that US Ambassador
to the United Nations John Bolton had done the job as expected.
Annan made the evaluation after the White House announcement of
Bolton's resignation earlier Monday.
"He came at a time when we had lots of tough issues," the UN
chief told reporters at the UN headquarters in New York. "As a
representative of the US government he pressed ahead with the
instructions that he had been given, and tried to work as
effectively as he could with the other ambassadors."
Bolton's brusque style has aroused wide dispute either inside or
outside the UN building. Actually, he is believed having quite
strained relations with many of his colleagues in the United
Nations, including Annan.
"I think it is difficult to blame one individual ambassador for
difficulties on some of these issues, whether it is reform or some
other issues," Annan said, with obvious reference to Bolton who
pushed strongly for the UN reform.
However, the secretary-general stressed that it is important
that the ambassadors work together, that the ambassadors understand
that to get concessions, they have to make concessions, and they
need to work with each other for the organization to move
ahead.
(Xinhua News Agency December 5, 2006)
