With only a few days left before all United Nations member states elect two countries to non-permanent seats on the powerful Security Council, a leading Caribbean diplomat at the world body, Liz Thompson used those words to

describe the possible outcome of the race between Canada, Ireland and Norway.

Interestingly, many foreign policy experts believe Canada is going to lose and they base that con- clusion on Ireland’s ability to portray itself at the UN as a country that was far more in tune with the developing world; was generous, despite its limited resources; and consistent in global affairs than its opponents, especially Canada.

“If you think of

Ireland as a small country and you consider that it does not have the number of diplomatic missions abroad, just the sheer diplomatic footprint with ambassadors and other representatives on the ground across the globe, far less than Canada

and that Ireland would not have spent the kind of money over the years that Canada has within the UN and its various agencies, then Ireland should not, in theory, have a chance.

She seemingly went out of her way to praise Canada’s UN Ambassador, Marc Andre’ Blanchard, whom she called an “excellent” representative and “a great friend” of the Caribbean who is a skilled diplomat and knows the Caribbean very well.

For his part, Dr. Knight said that when it came to the three candidates and their support for the Caribbean, there was a “perception in the international community” that Canada was closer to the Caribbean than either Norway or Ireland and therefore could benefit from that long-time partnership when the votes were cast.