Bolton fights for UN nomination, promising American leadership

John Bolton, one of the most controversial members of the Bush administration, was forced on to the defensive when he was grilled by senators over his nomination to be Washington's representative at the UN.

John Bolton, one of the most controversial members of the Bush administration, was forced on to the defensive when he was grilled by senators over his nomination to be Washington's representative at the UN.

He defended his readiness to work with the world body and denied that he had ever put pressure on intelligence analysts to alter their findings to support the administration's so-called war on terror.

The confirmation hearing yesterday was interrupted briefly by three demonstrators. But they did nothing to unsettle Mr Bolton, who stuck to his claim that he had not inflated findings of the intelligence community for political ends. He admitted, however, that he asked for the transfer of one expert who refused to support his claims that Cuba was developing biological weapons.

Mr Bolton, who once remarked thatit would make little difference if the UN building in New York "lost 10 storeys", said he would work to strengthen a body that had "gone off track".

"The US is committed to the success of the UN and we view the UN as an important component of our diplomacy," he said. "Now more than ever, the United Nations needs American leadership."

Senator Joseph Biden of Delaware, the senior Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, expressed his "grave concern" about Mr Bolton's nomination, questioning his diplomatic temperament. "In my judgement your judgements on how to deal with emerging threats has not been particularly useful," he said. "I'm surprised the nominee wants the job he's been nominated for, given the many negative things he's had to say about the UN."

Mr Bolton, 56, has served in the past three Republican administrations and been one of his party's strongest conservative voices on foreign affairs. His nomination by President George Bush last month sent a clear message that the administration remained adamant on getting its way at the UN.

While Mr Bolton denied he had put pressure on members of the intelligence community to tailor their reports to fit the administration's belief that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction, he admitted that he asked for the transfer of a State Department bioweapons expert. Christian Westermann declined in 2002 to approve a speech Mr Bolton was preparing to give claiming that Cuba had a biological weapons programme. A much toned-down version of the speech was delivered three months later but only after Mr Bolton had reportedly called Mr Westermann to his office, berated him and sought to have him fired. "I never sought to have Mr Westermann terminated or fired at all," said Mr Bolton. "I said I had lost trust in him and thought that he should work [on other projects]."

Addressing the issue of UN reform, Mr Bolton said the general assembly needed to focus more on human rights violators and international terrorism. "We must work to galvanise the general assembly to focus its attention on issues of true importance," he said.

"Sadly, there have been times when the general assembly has gone off track," he added, pointing to the "abominable" resolution that equated Zionism with racism.

Senator Richard Lugar, the Foreign Relations Committee chairman, said that Mr Bolton had been criticised for being "abrasive, confrontational and insensitive". "In the diplomatic world, neither bluntness nor rhetorical sensitivity is a virtue in itself," Senator Lugar said. "There are times when blunt talk serves a policy purpose; other times it does not."

Republicans control the committee 10-8 but Democrats are hoping that moderate Republican Senator Lincoln Chafee might be persuaded to vote with them to block the confirmation and deal an embarrassing blow to Mr Bush.