Paul Heinbecker
| Date | 01 June 2004 |
| Published date | 01 June 2004 |
| DOI | 10.1177/002070200405900210 |
| Author | Jane Boulden |
| Subject Matter | Movers & Shakers |
MOVERS
&
SHAKERS
JANE
BOULDEN
Paul
Heinbecker
IN
MARCH
2003,
AT
THE
HEIGHT
OF
THE
NEGOTIATIONS
on
a
second
Security
Council
resolution
on
Iraq,
Canada's
ambassador
to
the
United Nations,
Paul
Heinbecker,
found
himself
briefly,
but
deter-
minedly,
at
centre
stage.
For
a
couple
of
days
in
the
midst
of
one
of
the
most
significant
UN
debates
in
recent
memory,
Ambassador
Heinbecker
drew the
attention
of
the world.
On
4
March
2003,
the
Globe
and
Mail
carried
a
photo
of
the dapper ambassador,
in
overcoat
and
glasses,
next
to
a
headline
that
read
"UN
eyes
Canadian
proposal."
The
headline
was
echoed
in
various forms
by
major
international
news
organizations.
The
reason
for
all
the
attention
was
a
Canadian
propos-
al
for
a
compromise
resolution
on
Iraq
at
a
time
when
the
two
sides
in
the
debate
were
drifting
farther
apart
and
war
seemed
inevitable.
The
idea
drew
the
attention
of
Security
Council
members.
Its
substantive
base-the
idea
that
the
Security
Council
should
establish
a
set
of
dead-
lines
for
the
achievement
of
specific
disarmament
tasks-was
support-
ed by
many
Council
members,
including
Britain,
which
adopted
the
idea
in
a
proposal
a
few
weeks
later.
The
fact
that
Heinbecker should
be
the
proponent and
author
of
a
Canadian
compromise
proposal
on
Iraq
was
not
a
surprise to
his
col-
leagues
in
the
Canadian
foreign
service.
This
was
probably
the
first
Jane
Boulden
holds
a
Canadian
Research
Chair
in
international
relations
and
securi-
ty
studies
at
the
Royal
Military
College
of
Canada.
She
is
the
co-editor
of
Terrorism
and
the
UN:
Before
and After September
11.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL
Spring
2004
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