France's UN mission in Geneva posted a message targeting the United States after UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk's term was extended for another four years. The mission wrote, "The US used to be a beacon of human rights. It is no longer. Today it stands isolated alongside North Korea, Nicaragua, Mali, and Russia. And the world no longer listens to it," adding the hashtag "#AmericaAlone."
The US Ambassador to the UN, Mike Waltz, criticized France's position in a reply on the same platform. "While disappointing, it is not surprising; France is trying to distract from its shameful vote that indulges the worst human rights violators. France voted for someone who lectures free sovereign democracies like the US, Britain and Israel but cosies up to the world's worst oppressors," Waltz said.
In a vote in the UN General Assembly on Saturday, Volker Türk's term was extended from 12 October 2026 until 11 October 2030, with 144 in favor, 10 against, and 13 abstentions. The US had asked for the vote to be delayed, but member states rejected the request.
Speaking before the vote, Ambassador Jeff Bartos, the US representative for UN management and reform, harshly criticized Türk: "Mr. Türk has brought the system to its deathbed. If you reappoint Volker Türk for another four years, this system will take its last breath."
Bartos argued that Türk disproportionately condemns democracies while failing to respond adequately to violations by authoritarian governments. He noted that Türk's criticism of Israel is far greater than that of other countries, and claimed that Türk remained silent for 12 days over the wave of violence that erupted in Iran but was quick to condemn US military action against Iran.
France's UN Ambassador Jérôme Bonnafont offered the opposite assessment during the General Assembly debate. Bonnafont said that at a time of mounting attacks on multilateral institutions and on the universality of human rights, Türk had shown "rigor and impartiality." "He has been a voice of conscience, confronting states with facts and their responsibilities," Bonnafont said.
Meanwhile, the Geneva-based monitoring group UN Watch released an analysis of Türk's public statements during his tenure. The analysis found that Türk criticized the US more than China, North Korea, Cuba, Saudi Arabia and Qatar combined. The group claimed that in statements made on his own initiative, Türk made no criticism of Cuba, North Korea and several other authoritarian countries. UN Watch Director Hillel Neuer called the reappointment "rushed and unprecedented."
A US official close to the matter told Fox News Digital that Washington was taken aback by the French public attack, which the official called "arrogant," and that opposing a UN official's reappointment does not mean being against human rights. The same official stressed that the vote was rushed and that Türk's current term runs until October.
The attack on the US by the government of French President Emmanuel Macron escalated diplomatic tensions between the two countries. Meanwhile, Nile Gardiner of the Heritage Foundation responded on X: "Perhaps you should show some gratitude? The French owe their existence as a sovereign nation to the United States."
