Bill Clinton: “the U.S. State Department is legally obligated to provide security protection for the United Nations and its missions.…”

“the U.S. State Department is legally obligated to provide security protection for the United Nations and its missions. Under a longstanding arrangement, the City of New York has provided this police security for the United Nations and its missions, and then it has been reimbursed by the State Department. Long ago, the State Department decided the best way to do this was to have the city provide the service and then provide a reimbursement. Since September 11, the security needs of the United Nations have increased to about $18.5 million annually in New York alone. Then there have been additional events, such as the U.N. General Assembly and the Millennium Summit alone cost almost $20 million. Thus, the authorization for the program entitled 'Protection of Foreign Missions and Officials' must be increased so that the City of New York can receive adequate reimbursement. I thank the chairman for his understanding and his cooperation in making this possible. I thank the ranking member as well. This program has been authorized at $10 million over the last several years. It will provide reimbursement not only for New York but also Los Angeles and Chicago. The annual figure will be increased $21 million to cover all three cities' expenses; plus an authorization of $55.9 million is included to reimburse the cities for back claims accumulated over the last several years. I thank the chairman and the ranking member for accepting this amendment.”