Canadian Ambassador to the United Nations Bob Rae in 2022. Rae, whose father once held the same post, left his position earlier this month after five years.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
Earlier this month, Bob Rae ended his five-year run as Canada’s ambassador to the United Nations, where he was the country’s voice during a time of widespread global upheaval.
From COVID-19 to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the conflict in the Middle East, the former Ontario premier was an outspoken representative in the international arena.
In a wide-ranging interview with The Globe and Mail, Mr. Rae spoke about what he will miss the most about the role, what he plans to do next, and the state of the United Nations.
In your final speech, you reference UN Secretary-General António Guterres saying that the UN is not a cafeteria – that you can’t only fund the things you like and not fund things you don’t. You basically said countries need to contribute more widely if this institution is going to work. Why make that message now?
Well, because the UN is at a critical point financially.
We don’t talk honestly enough about the money, and people say, “Oh, it’s not about the money.” You say, “Well, actually a lot of it is about the money” and so we need to have a much more candid conversation about the finances, about the programming, how to make it more efficient.
We’ve made some progress, but there’s still a lot of progress to be made and nothing will be gained unless there’s a wider understanding among member states and among the general public about how the UN actually operates.
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While ambassador, you made a lot of really strong moral arguments. In an age of transactional dealings in foreign affairs, how do you see these sorts of ideological or moral considerations playing out?
I don’t think human rights is an ideology. They are a pretty fundamental value that I think speaks to the foundational principles of human dignity, and that’s something that, again, I don’t see how we can be quiet about that. I think it’s something that we need to reaffirm.
There will always be debates about human rights and there will always be arguments about national sovereignty versus global institutions, but I still believe that Canada needs to be consistently one of those countries that not only talks about human rights but also implements human rights.
And I think as well, when other countries say, “Well, you guys have done a lousy job on human rights in your own country when it comes to Indigenous people,” we’ve been very clear in saying that we will continue to do everything we can to recognize the mistakes of the past and the mistakes of the present. And to recognize the importance of the rule of law, and that’s something that we believe in as a country.
Did anyone in the government ever express disapproval over your frank communication style or your tweets, either publicly or privately?
Of course, of course – absolutely. Neither prime minister has directly, and Justin Trudeau, in fact, he would look at me and he’d say, “some people are unhappy with you.” And I said, “Oh, I know that.” He said, “Well, don’t worry too much. You’re doing a good job.”
Ministers and press secretaries and civil servants like order, and they like things to be quite disciplined, and I accept that. And so, if somebody said, you know, “stop talking about that,” I would say fine for as long as I can, and then I would somehow come out another way. But, you know, I am who I am. And they kind of knew that when they appointed me.
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What will you miss most about leaving this role?
For all the foibles and faults of the UN, there’s still a sense of being at the centre of things, or the centre of some things.
I also felt that at a personal level, it stretched me. It stretched all my talents, and you’re talking about different parts of the world, different countries, different situations. You’re moving from politics, to economics, to technology, to a whole range of things. And the pace was always stimulating. It was a great honour to be able to serve.
At a personal level, too, there was always an element of nostalgia in my doing this job because my dad had done it before me, and that connection with him was very meaningful to me.
So, what’s next?
I can’t really say, because I’ve been flat out at the UN. Even though my decision to leave was my own, and it was something I planned for some time, I didn’t really want to get into talking, engaging with a whole bunch of other folks.
It’ll be a little different, but it’ll still allow me to do some writing and to do some teaching, I hope, and to do some mentoring of folks. We’ll just see what happens.
This interview has been condensed and edited for length and clarity.