US walks out of UN Security Council meeting during France's remarks

Core point

The US delegation walked out of a UN Security Council meeting on Monday, in protest at comments made by France that compared Washington's voting on human rights to that of authoritarian states. The diplomatic row was initially sparked last week, when the US joined North Korea and Russia in voting against extending Volker Turk's term as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. US ambassador Mike Waltz accused France of voting for a human rights chief who had been 'lecturing' democratic countries while 'cozying up to the world's worst oppressors'. The fight over Turk's second term reflects tensions between Washington and the United Nations.