Backstabbing for Beginners: My Crash Course in International Diplomacy - Brossura

Soussan, Michael

Brossura

ISBN 10: 1568584415 ISBN 13: 9781568584416

Casa editrice: Nation Books, 2010

Riassunto

Soon to be a major motion picture starring Ben Kingsley and Josh HutchersonThe year is 1997, Michael Soussan, a fresh-faced young graduate takes up a new job at the U.N.'s Oil-for-Food Program, the largest humanitarian operation in the organization's history. His mission is to help Iraqi civilians survive the devastating impact of economic sanctions that were imposed following the 1990 invasion of Kuwait. As a gaffe-prone novice in a world of sensitive taboos, Soussan struggles to negotiate the increasing paranoia of his incomprehensible boss and the inner workings of one of the world's notoriously complex bureaucracies. But as he learns more about the vast sums of money flowing through the program, it becomes clear that all is not what it seems. Soussan becomes aware that Saddam Hussein is extracting illegal kickbacks, a discovery that sets him on a collision course with the organization's leadership. On March 8, 2004, in a Wall Street Journal op-ed editorial, Soussan becomes the first insider to call for an independent investigation" of the U.N.'s dealings with Saddam Hussein. One week later, a humiliated Kofi Annan appointed Paul Volcker to lead a team of sixty international investigators, whose findings resulted in hundreds of prosecutions in multiple countries, many of which are still ongoing. Backstabbing for Beginners is at once a witty tale of one man's political coming of age, and a stinging indictment of the hypocrisy that prevailed at the heart of one of the world's most idealistic institutions.

Su questo libro

Recensione

"(Michael Soussan's) tale is one of a profound institutional corruption, infinitely more significant than that of any single individual. The next time you hear anyone mention the United Nations and moral authority in the same sentence, tell them to read this book."
--Th Sunday Times, November 9, 2008

L'autore

Michael Soussan has written for numerous publications, including the Wall Street Journal, The New Republic, and the International Herald Tribune. He currently teaches at New York University's centre for Global Affairs and lives in New York City.

Dettagli dell?edizione

• Editore: Nation Books
• Data di pubblicazione: 2010
• ISBN 10: 1568584415
• ISBN 13: 9781568584416
• Rilegatura: Copertina flessibile
• Lingua: Inglese
• Numero di pagine: 332