The UN watchdog welcomed Canada's negative vote on the Islamic Republic's membership of the UN's Planning and Coordination Committee on Wednesday, November 20. This human rights organization, which opposes the membership of the Islamic Republic on this committee, announced that Canada did not oppose the appointment of the Islamic Republic in April, but this time voted against it.
Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch, called Canada's decision "the right position" and expressed hope that Ottawa would oppose such nominations from the outset in the future. He also asked Britain, France, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, Norway, Finland, Switzerland, Austria and Australia, which agreed to present the Islamic Republic as a candidate for this committee in April, to publicly announce whether they voted yes or no for the Islamic Republic in the last vote.
Despite Canada's opposition and criticism of the UN watchdog, the Islamic Republic of Iran was elected as a member of the Planning and Coordination Committee with 144 votes in a November 20 vote of the UN General Assembly. This committee has a role in reviewing the plans and coordinating the activities of the United Nations.