After Congo rebels end fight, challenges remain

November 06, 2013

KIBATI, Congo (AP) — A Congolese army mortar shell destroyed Emmanuel Kazingufu's home in mid-August as soldiers hunted down M23 rebels. Now that the rebels have given up their fight, the 27-year-old is rebuilding.

In mineral-rich eastern Congo, wracked by violence for nearly two decades by a myriad of armed groups, the government's victory over the M23 rebels brings only cautious optimism. "I am not sure this is the end of the M23. I learned that they had fled to Rwanda —that's where they came from. They could come back," Kazingufu said Wednesday as he worked on reconstructing his home with wooden planks.

The 19-month rebellion forced tens of thousands of people to flee their homes, many of whom have sought refuge too many times before. Now the government must disarm the M23 fighters and negotiate with other renegade militias to establish a sustainable peace, experts say.

On Wednesday, the Congolese flag again flew in Chanzu, the former fief of M23 leader Sultani Makenga, who is believed to have fled the country as his movement disintegrated. Congolese authorities found a stash of some 300 tons of weapons left behind there, Gov. Julien Paluku said.

M23's promise to end its rebellion "signals an important milestone," said Tariq Riebl, Oxfam's humanitarian coordinator for Congo, adding that attention must now shift to eliminating other threats to civilians.

"The demise of one group doesn't spell the end of conflict in the country's east," he said. "Now, more than ever, the Congolese government and international community must take steps to ensure that other groups don't move in to fill the space left by the disbanding of M23."

On Wednesday, the head of the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Congo pledged to do just that. "Armed groups should know that we're not going to leave a void. We are going to respond with force against all threats to the civilian population," Martin Kobler said.

The greatest remaining menace comes from the FDLR, a group led by Rwandan Hutus who helped commit the 1994 genocide and later escaped to Congo. The presence of the FDLR has prompted Rwanda to invade Congo twice before in an attempt to wipe out the group. It also has provoked a series of Congolese Tutsi rebellions, including the latest one launched by M23 in April 2012.

While the FDLR has weakened in recent years, analysts say it is still well entrenched and its presence in eastern Congo is a reason many of the other armed groups say they exist. Even as the Congolese military celebrated its victory, attention began shifting to the tasks now ahead to secure the peace.

Kobler briefed a closed meeting of the U.N. Security Council in New York by videolink, and China's U.N. Ambassador Liu Jieyi, the council president, said members will be responding with "a very important message" to help countries in the region achieve peace and security on a wide scale.

France's U.N. Ambassador, Gerard Araud, said his country will circulate a draft presidential statement later Wednesday. "This success is only the beginning," Araud said. "M23 combatants must now be disarmed. The Congolese administration needs to get back to the areas that were recovered and provide basic services to the population. All other armed groups beside the M23 which threaten civilians in the Kivus need to be neutralized ... and finally the states of the region must deal with the root causes of the conflict."

Rwanda's U.N. ambassador, Eugene Richard Gasana, said the Congolese army and U.N. peacekeeping troops, including its new intervention brigade, must go after the FDLR immediately. "Otherwise I won't let them sleep," he said.

Congo's U.N. Ambassador, Ignace Gata, told reporters his country wants a durable peace. "Today we are happy to have ended the rebellion, but we know the work is not finished." Russ Feingold, special envoy for the Great Lakes Region of Africa and Congo, said in a conference call with U.S. State Department reporters Wednesday in Washington that an agreement has been negotiated with the M23 and could be signed this week or early next week in Uganda.

That agreement has "very specific provisions" for how the group will be disarmed and protected from other fighters operating in the region. The Congolese government also must resolve the issue of who will be eligible for amnesty and reintegration.

"If this agreement goes through the way I hope it will and believe it will, it will only provide amnesty for the rank-and-file members of M23 for purposes for having been part of a rebellion," he said.

It marks a change from 2009, when a previous agreement with rebels allowed even those accused of committing major crimes to come back into the Congolese military. Human Rights Watch has accused the M23 fighters of killing scores of civilians and forcibly recruiting child soldiers, among other abuses. Many of the rebel group's leaders are now believed to have fled into neighboring Uganda and Rwanda.

Congo's government and a U.N. group of experts have long said neighboring Rwanda has provided weapons and other support to M23, a claim the Rwandan government denies. It remains to be seen how much sway M23's military command still has over its rebels and whether they all will abide by the order to lay down their arms, said Timo Mueller, a Goma-based researcher with the Enough Project, an advocacy group active in eastern Congo.

"M23 soldiers need to disarm and to disarm they need security guarantees," he said. "It's important that the army does not resort to revenge killings and also the wider Tutsi community has to be protected."

Without full disarmament, there is a risk that the M23 could simply return with the same members only in another shape or form. The M23 itself emerged in April 2012 in the wake of a previous Tutsi rebellion. By November 2012, they swept into Goma and briefly held the city of 1 million people, only to retreat under international pressure.

In the aftermath of the Goma siege, internal divisions mounted within M23. The group was substantially weakened after its leader, Bosco Ntaganda, turned himself in to face charges at the International Criminal Court earlier this year.

The Congolese army succeeded in defeating the M23 because it reorganized to become a stronger, more competent force and it received logistical support from U.N. forces that had stronger rules of engagement, analyst said. Another crucial factor was that Rwanda's aid to the rebels substantially diminished during this latest round of clashes, they said.

In the town of Kibati, Emmanuel Kazingufu said he hopes the end to hostilities this time would be followed up with meaningful dialogue that will bring a lasting peace. "Building and rebuilding is too tiring," he said as he put back up the walls of his home.

Larson reported from Dakar, Senegal. Associated Press writers Saleh Mwanamilongo in Kinshasa, Congo; Deb Riechmann in Washington; and Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.

M23 fighters in eastern Congo say ending rebellion

November 06, 2013

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — The M23 rebel group blamed for killing scores of civilians in eastern Congo over the last year and a half announced Tuesday it was ending its rebellion as an emboldened Congolese military seized the last two hills that had remained under rebel control.

While the dramatic developments marked a significant success in the Congolese government's fight against armed groups in the embattled east, experts warned that the rebel retreat would not result in an immediate peace in a region ravaged by fighting for nearly two decades.

Envoys from the U.N., U.S., African Union and European Union welcomed the M23 announcement but stressed in a joint statement that it is "only one step" toward addressing the persistent conflict and instability in Congo and ending violence by all illegitimate armed groups in the country.

U.S. envoy to Congo Russ Feingold called it a "critical and exciting step in the right direction." In the capital, Congolese government spokesman Lambert Mende vowed that the military would now focus its efforts on pursuing Hutu fighters from the FDLR. The group is led by Rwandans who helped commit the 1994 genocide and later escaped to Congo, prompting a series of Tutsi rebellions including the latest one by M23.

"M23 has been crossed off the list and now the military has its sights on the FDLR," Mende told journalists. About 100 M23 fighters have been captured by government forces. M23 leader Sultani Makenga and other high-ranking officials within the movement are now on the run and are believed to have fled into neighboring Rwanda or Uganda, Mende said.

The announcement of M23's demise came after the Congolese military backed by United Nations forces stepped up its offensive against the rebels last month as peace talks once again stalled. The Congolese military rapidly seized control of more than a half dozen towns in just a matter of days, and Mende said Tuesday they had finally recaptured the last two remaining rebel areas of Chanzu and Runyonyi.

M23 President Bertrand Bisimwa said in a statement early Tuesday that he was ordering rebel commanders to "prepare troops for the process of disarmament, demobilization and social reintegration on terms to be agreed upon with the Congolese government."

Residents of Goma, a city of 1 million people that the M23 briefly overtook one year ago, expressed cautious optimism that the end of M23 could stabilize the area wracked by a myriad of rebel groups and militias.

"That they put down their arms and stopped fighting is a good thing. We are liberated but I'm not sure it's the end of the M23," said Diane Wamahoro, a 20-year-old waitress. Ida Sawyer, a senior researcher with Human Rights Watch in eastern Congo, called the M23's declaration "a significant and positive step forward." The group has documented dozens of killing and rapes blamed on M23 since it announced its formation last year.

"There are huge challenges ahead and one will be the arrests and bringing to justice of those responsible for serious abuses," she said. Jason Stearns, a Congo expert, wrote on his blog Congo Siasa that the Congolese military had been performing better than it did in 2012 and also had benefited from the U.N. mission, which helped plan the latest operations against the rebels.

"But it may be the third factor that was the determining one--the absence of support from Rwanda," Stearns wrote. "According to several reports from the front lines, despite indications of some cross-border support in the Kibumba area, the M23 was largely left to its own devices."

M23 is widely believed to have received military and financial support from the government of neighboring Rwanda, whose president is also Tutsi. Rwanda denies having aided the rebels despite evidence laid out in a report by a United Nations group of experts. However, that support appears to have waned in recent months amid growing international pressure for it to stop fueling Congo's troubles with rebels.

M23 launched its movement in April 2012, accusing the government of failing to live up to its end of the bargain on a March 23, 2009 peace agreement. Many of its leaders came from another ethnic Tutsi rebel group known as the CNDP that had effectively been neutralized.

The M23 rebels briefly seized control of Goma in November 2012 before retreating under international pressure. In the aftermath of the Goma siege, internal divisions mounted within M23. The group was substantially weakened after its leader Bosco Ntaganda turned himself in to face charges at the International Criminal Court earlier this year.

As M23 fighters flee, Sawyer said regrouping and rebranding again as the Tutsi rebels have before could prove challenging in light of the shifting landscape. "It's possible there will be another reiteration of a Rwandan-backed rebellion in eastern Congo, but I think it's probably going to be a lot harder the next time around," she said.

Larson reported from Dakar, Senegal. Associated Press writers Joseph Kay in Goma, Congo and Christopher Torchia in Johannesburg contributed to this report.

India mission to Mars blasts off successfully

New Delhi (AFP)
Nov 05, 2013

India successfully launched its first mission to Mars on Tuesday, aiming to become the only Asian nation to reach the Red Planet with a program showcasing its low-cost space technology.

"It's lift off," said a commentator on state television as the red-and-black rocket blasted into a slightly overcast sky on schedule at 02:38 pm (0908 GMT) from the southern spaceport in Sriharikota.

The 350-tonne launch vehicle carrying an unmanned probe was monitored by dozens of tense-looking scientists in white lab coats who faced their most daunting task since India began its space program in 1963.

The country has never before attempted inter-planetary travel, and more than half of all missions to Mars have ended in failure, including China's in 2011 and Japan's in 2003.

After 44 minutes, applause rippled around the control room after monitoring ships stationed in the South Pacific reported that the spacecraft had successfully completed the first stage of its 300-day journey.

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) chairman K. Radhakrishnan slapped a colleague on the back and said he was "extremely happy" to announce that the rocket had placed the probe in an orbit around Earth.

The Mars Orbiter Mission, known as "Mangalyaan" in India, was revealed only 15 months ago by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, shortly after China's attempt flopped when it failed to leave Earth's atmosphere.

The timing and place of the announcement -- in an Independence Day speech -- led to speculation that India was seeking to make a point to its militarily and economically superior neighbor, despite denials from ISRO.

The gold-colored probe, the size of a small car, will aim to detect methane in the Martian atmosphere. It has been hurriedly assembled and was carried into orbit by a rocket much smaller than US or Russian equivalents.

Lacking the power to fly directly, the spacecraft will orbit Earth for nearly a month, building up the necessary velocity to break free from our planet's gravitational pull.

Only then will it begin the second stage of its journey which will test India's scientists to the full, five years after they sent a probe called Chandrayaan to the moon.

The cost of the Mars mission is 4.5 billion rupees ($73 million), less than a sixth of the 455 million dollars earmarked for a Mars probe by NASA which will launched later this month.

"We didn't believe they'd be able to launch this early," project scientist for the NASA Mars probe, Joe Grebowsky, told AFP before blastoff. "If it's successful, it's fantastic."

He underlined that Mars, which has a complicated orbit meaning it is between 50-400 million kilometers from Earth, was a far more complex prospect compared with a moon mission.

"When you shoot a rocket at Mars you have to take into account that Mars is going to move a good deal before you get there. The moon is fairly close," he said.

There have been recent setbacks for India too, including when Chandrayaan lost contact with its controllers in 2009. Another launch vehicle blew up after take-off in 2010.

The program also has to contend with critics who say a country that struggles to feed its people adequately and where more than half have no toilets should not be splurging on space travel.

ISRO counters that its technology has helped economic development through satellites which monitor weather and water resources, or enable communication in remote areas.

The Bangalore-based organization and its 16,000 staff also share their rocket technology with the state-run defense body responsible for India's missile program.

The United States is the only nation that has successfully sent robotic explorers to land on Mars, the most recent being Curiosity which touched down in August 2012.

One of its discoveries appeared to undercut the purpose of the Indian mission to find evidence of methane, which would lend credence to the idea of Mars supporting a primitive form of life.

A study of data from Curiosity, published in September, found the rover had detected only trace elements of methane in the atmosphere.

"Remember that it (Curiosity's methane reading) is for a single spot. One point doesn't make it a story for the whole planet," top Indian space scientist Jitendra Nath Goswami told AFP.

NASA, which will launch its Maven probe on November 18 to study why Mars lost its atmosphere, is helping ISRO with communications.

Clouds of methane have previously been identified by telescopes on Mars, but the gas has never been confirmed by a mission there.

Methane on Earth is mostly produced by micro-organisms, so a positive reading would suggest some form of life on a planet that scientists believe was once covered with water.

Source: Mars Daily.
Link: http://www.marsdaily.com/reports/Indian_Mars_mission_blasts_off_from_southern_spaceport_999.html.

Multiple Missions Will Get China Moving On Mars

by Morris Jones for SpaceDaily.com
Sydney, Australia (SPX)
Nov 06, 2013

In early December, China will land its first robot spacecraft on the surface of the Moon. Shortly after landing, the Chang'e-3 lander will release a six-wheeled rover that will trundle across the regolith.

We've been expecting this rover to land for a long time, as it represents an intermediate step in China's plans to robotically explore the Moon. China has already sent two spacecraft to orbit the Moon, and is now moving on to landings. The third phase of exploration will involve a lander that collects samples of lunar soil and returns them to Earth.

While most Chinese media coverage has focused on the upcoming first lander, it's worthwhile remembering that China has more to come in the near future. There has been little discussion of these plans in recent times, but roughly three years ago, China made signs in its state-run media that it plans a follow-up to the Chang'e-3 mission. China has two Moon rovers in the pipeline.

This fits in with a trend that China seems to be following with its lunar program. Each type of mission has two essentially identical spacecraft built for it. The first spacecraft is placed in the spotlight and given the prime mission.

The second spacecraft waits quietly in the wings, with almost no publicity. If the first mission fails, the second spacecraft can be rolled out fairly quickly to replace its lost twin. If the first mission succeeds, the second spacecraft is assigned to fly a different mission to the first. Either way, good use is made of the backup spacecraft.

China was very coy about admitting the "twin spacecraft" strategy for years, and only revealed that a second lunar orbiter had been built shortly before the launch of the Chang'e-1 spacecraft in 2007. At the time, China stated that the spacecraft was a back-up. Fortunately, Chang'e-1 performed well in its mission. The back-up spacecraft, now labeled Chang'e-2, was launched on a modified mission in 2010.

Going further (literally) than its twin, Chang'e-2 completed a shorter mission in lunar orbit and then flew deeper into space to fly past the asteroid Toutatis. Chang'e-2 also flew a different trajectory to the Moon and used a slightly more powerful launch vehicle.

Let's examine the next pair of twin lunar spacecraft. Although China has not discussed this in recent times, it seems almost certain that there is a back-up lunar lander and rover that is either mostly constructed or fully constructed.

This spacecraft is probably in mothballs right now, awaiting the outcome of the upcoming Chang'e-3 mission. If Chang'e-3 fails, we could see this backup lander launched within two years on an identical mission profile.

This analyst expects a happier outcome. The maturity of China's space technology suggests that this mission will be as successful as China's previous voyages to the Moon. It will take some time to complete the mission and then digest the copious amounts of data, both scientific and engineering, that the mission will return.

This will mean that the back-up lander will probably be grounded for a few years more. Although the spacecraft will complete the same basic mission objectives of landing on the Moon and deploying a rover, there will be changes. Planning a new mission for the spacecraft will be fun. China's engineers will have the luxury of using a proven system and the benefit of the scientific data it returns. We can expect that the next mission will be a little riskier.

The most significant change will be the landing site. China may wish to explore a region of the Moon that's geologically (ahem, selenologically) different from the first landing site. This could also involve landing in more difficult terrain, if the scientific returns are justified. Scouting areas that could help to select landing sites for Chinese lunar sample-return missions could be useful.

The instruments carried by the spacecraft could also be different. Some instruments will probably be flown again, although it is not clear if those supplied by international partners for the first mission will be repeated. This will provide opportunities for new experiments and new types of data.

Driving the rover on the Moon will be technically challenging. If China finds that the vehicle can handle its tasks, it may elect to give the next rover more autonomy or wider safety margins. This would improve its performance.

The lander and rover are heavy gear, requiring the use of the fairly powerful Long March 3B rocket. This analyst does not expect any changes in the launch vehicle or any increases in the spacecraft mass for the second landing mission.

The Chang'e-3 mission is China's first lunar landing spacecraft, but it will not be an isolated mission. More advanced Chinese lunar plans will be carried out in the decade ahead. The technology and landing systems demonstrated on this first landing will be critical to achieving these feats.

Source: Mars Daily.
Link: http://www.marsdaily.com/reports/Multiple_Missions_Will_China_Moving_On_Mars_999.html.

Mythbusting India's Mars Mission

by Morris Jones for SpaceDaily.com
Sydney, Australia (SPX)
Nov 06, 2013

The successful launch of India's Mars Orbiter Mission is a major step forward for an advancing Asian space power. The global space community has applauded the flight, which will help the world to better understand the red planet.

It's thus surprising to see such a high tide of denouncements and misjudgments for this mission circulating in the media and online forums. Weeks ago, we saw naive criticisms of China's upcoming Moon rover by a Chinese scientist in the Hong Kong press. Now India is in the line of fire with even more dubious comments. What's going on?

Some of this seems to stem from surprise. India has operated one of the world's most advanced space programs for decades, but it has largely escaped the limelight. This has partially been due to some bad communications strategies, but it's also because the program has been more focused on utilitarian goals than headline-grabbing feats in space. India operates its own space launch vehicles and builds its own satellites.

It is also one of a small number of nations to have successfully recovered a satellite from space. Indian satellites are used in communications, weather observation and land management. This vast nation would be much worse off without the benefits of its space program.

The high-profile Mars mission has served as a wake-up call to many people who don't pay much attention to spaceflight. They should understand that this Mars mission is simply another step in a large, long and diverse space program. India has been in space with force for decades. If this mission serves as a wake-up call for the world, so be it.

There are criticisms that money spent on the mission could or should be spent elsewhere. Such dubious claims have been made for every nation that has ventured into space. Generally, these theories have been proven to be somewhat bunk. Stopping space missions does not stop poverty. They also neglect the true economics of the mission. The Mars Orbiter Mission uses a moderately priced, existing launch vehicle design.

It also recycles an existing spacecraft body design, with modifications for deep space. While it is not as sophisticated as other current Mars missions, the pricetag for the Mars Orbiter mission is measured in the tens of millions of dollars. This is truly Mars exploration on a shoestring budget. India's Mars program promises to return useful engineering and scientific data for a price that puts other space agencies to shame!

The science looks good, too. There have been some criticisms of the decision to include a methane detector on the mission. Recent results from NASA's Curiosity Mars rover suggest that methane gas will be hard to find in the Martian atmosphere, and the Indian detector will return a negative result. This expectation is sometimes presented as if there is no point in flying the methane experiment on the Mars Orbiter Mission.

Again, this is silly. Science is not a treasure hunt. It is the quest for truth, even when the truth is not as inspiring as our expectations. The Indian mission will nicely complement the ground data from NASA's rover. Two independent results from different missions in different places will forge a stronger case. There is probably no methane on Mars, and the data from these two missions will settle the question.

In addition, there are four other scientific payloads on the mission, including a color camera. All of them are worthwhile. The heavy focus on the Martian atmosphere by this mission also offers more bang for the buck.

The fate of the Martian atmosphere, which is believed to have been thicker in the past, is one of the hottest questions in planetary science today. Like NASA's upcoming MAVEN mission, itself largely focused on atmospheric questions, India's orbiter will help to resolve other mysteries besides the hunt for methane.

Good science. National pride. Technical advances. Inspiration for the world. India's first step towards Mars is worth the price.

Source: Mars Daily.
Link: http://www.marsdaily.com/reports/Mythbusting_Indias_Mars_Mission_999.html.

Greenpeace in Spain protests 28 arrested in Russia

November 08, 2013

MADRID (AP) — Greenpeace activists have climbed the facade of Barcelona's Sagrada Familia basilica to protest Russia's arrest of 28 members of their organization.

The protesters clung to the church's intricate stonework Friday and unfurled banners in several languages demanding "Liberty" for the activists arrested in the Arctic Ocean. Russia's coast guard disrupted an attempt by Greenpeace on Sept. 18 to scale a Gazprom-owned oil-drilling platform, seized their ship — the icebreaker Arctic Sunrise — and arrested the 28, plus a Russian photographer and a British videographer.

They were first accused of piracy, but Russian officials later said the charge was downgraded to hooliganism, which carries a maximum seven-year sentence. The Arctic Sunrise sails under the Dutch flag, and Netherlands has begun legal action against Russia's seizure of the vessel.

US, Israel lose UNESCO voting right in dispute

November 09, 2013

PARIS (AP) — American influence in culture, science and education around the world took a high-profile blow when the U.S. automatically lost voting rights at UNESCO by missing a deadline to repay its debt to the world's cultural agency.

The U.S. hasn't paid its dues to the Paris-based U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization in three years in protest to the decision by world governments to make Palestine a UNESCO member in 2011. Israel suspended its dues at the same time in support of the U.S. and also lost voting rights on Friday.

Under UNESCO rules, the U.S. and Israel had until Friday morning to resume funding or explain themselves, or to automatically lose their vote. A UNESCO official, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the issue, said nothing was received from either country.

The suspension of U.S. contributions — which account for $80 million a year, or 22 percent of UNESCO's overall budget — brought the agency to the brink of a financial crisis and forced it to end or scale back American-led initiatives such as Holocaust education and tsunami research over the past two years.

Many in Washington are now worried that the U.S. is on track to becoming a toothless UNESCO member with a weakened voice in international programs such as fighting extremism through education and promoting gender equality and press freedoms.

Some fear that a weaker U.S. presence will lead to growing anti-Israeli sentiment within UNESCO, where Arab-led criticism of Israel for territorial reasons has long been an issue. "We won't be able to have the same clout," said Phyllis Magrab, the Washington-based U.S. national commissioner for UNESCO. "In effect, we (now won't) have a full tool box. We're missing our hammer."

The UNESCO tension has prompted new criticism of U.S. laws that force an automatic funding cutoff for any U.N. agency with Palestine as a member. The official list of countries that lose their votes was expected to be read aloud on Saturday before the entire UNESCO general conference.

In a speech Friday night, David Killion, the outgoing U.S. ambassador to UNESCO, told delegates that top U.S. officials, including President Barack Obama "have been working tirelessly to seek a legislative remedy that would allow the United States to resume paying our contributions to UNESCO. Regrettably, that remedy has not yet been achieved."

But in defense of the U.S. suspension of funds, Killion reminded member nations that the United States had articulated its "principled position" regarding Palestine long before the controversial 2011 decision.

Israel's ambassador to UNESCO, Nimrod Barkan, said in an interview that his country supports the U.S. decision, "objecting to the politicization of UNESCO, or any international organization, with the accession of a non-existing country like Palestine."

UNESCO may be best known for its program to protect the cultures of the world via its Heritage sites, which include the Statue of Liberty and Mali's Timbuktu. But its core mission, as conceived by the U.S., a co-founder of the agency in 1946, was to be an anti-extremist organization. In today's world, it tackles foreign policy issues such as access to clean water, teaches girls to read, works to eradicate poverty, promotes freedom of expression, and gives people creative thinking skills to resist violent extremism.

Among UNESCO programs already slashed over funding shortages is one in Iraq that was intended to help restore water facilities. In danger is a Holocaust and genocide awareness program in Africa to teach about non-violence, non-discrimination and ethnic tolerance, using the example of the mass killing of Jews during World War II.

This loss is a particular blow to the U.S., since Holocaust awareness was one of the areas the country aggressively promoted in the agency's agenda when it rejoined in 2002 after an 18-year hiatus, during which the U.S. had withdrawn from UNESCO over differences in vision.

Some U.S. legislators also are concerned. "The United States must not voluntarily forfeit its leadership in the world community," Rep. Keith Ellison, a Democrat from Minnesota, told the AP in an email.

With efforts by Obama to get the money restored having failed or stalled, Ellison plans to introduce legislation in Congress to overturn what he calls the "antiquated" laws that automatically halted the flow of funds to the agency from November 2011.

The Obama administration has proposed language to amend the legislation, but it remains on the table amid recent U.S. budget setbacks. For some it's a question of sooner rather than later, with the U.S. racking up arrears to UNESCO of some $220,000 a day, which it will have to pay back if it ever wants to fill the empty chair and get back the vote.

"Paying off three years is manageable, but it indeed becomes much more difficult if you allow many years to pass and the bill gets larger and larger and larger," said Esther Brimmer, former U.S. assistant secretary of state for international organizations.

The Palestinian ambassador to UNESCO, Elias Sanbar, said other countries are beginning to make up for the U.S. shortfall. "Is this in the interest of the U.S., to be replaced?" he asked. UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova lamented the changes that are not only seeing America silenced within her organization but also bringing UNESCO financially to its knees.

"I regret to say that I'm seeing, in these last two years ... a declining American influence and American involvement," Bokova said in an interview. "I can't imagine how we could disengage with the United States at UNESCO. We are so intertwined with our message. What I regret is that this decision became so divisive and triggered this suspension of the funding," she added.

Bokova said she accepts political reality and will find ways for UNESCO to continue its work, despite a 2014 budget that's down by an estimated $150 million. Some fear this debacle will have more serious consequences, if Palestine joins other more strategically important international agencies such as the World Health Organization.