Finding a common ground

What lies behind the UN's criticism of the coalition forces?

The streets of Iraq's major cities are rife with looting. The coalition forces may have removed Saddam Hussein from power but their work is far from over - a criticism thrown at them from the United Nations.

In a HARDtalk interview on 15 April, Shashi Tharoor, Under Secretary of State for the UN defends his organisation's performance and answers its critics.

Click here to watch the full interview

The United Nations is calling on the coalition parties to do more to control looting, and to restore law and order in Iraq.

Kofi Annan's special adviser, and Under Secretary of State for the UN, Shashi Tharoor, told HARDtalk:

"We (the UN) would like to have seen the coalition troops making greater headway in promoting public order and security" He criticised that coalition forces and said they had "been found wanting in terms of their capacity to prevent looting".

Neither the pro war nor the anti war side is satisfied with the Security Council

Shashi Tharoor

On the subject of American sabre rattling over Syria, he said "we're not unduly worried .... the US and Syria are both members of the Security Council. There are plenty of ways of talking to each other."

Mini parliament

He admitted that both the pro and the anti war lobbies had felt let down by the UN:

"Neither the pro war nor the anti war side is satisfied with the Security Council, but that's because we're like a mini parliament. We're democratic".

He said the UN's aim was not to get countries to agree on every particular, but to find common ground.

Humanitarian role

Shashi Tharoor said that the UN was ready to play a humanitarian role as soon as it was safe for their staff to go in.

The UN will enter Iraq when it is safe to do so.

He stressed that if the US had a proposal on the structure of a future government in Iraq it should put it to the other members.

He believes they would give it serious consideration. He told Tim Sebastian:

"There is a point at which most countries are anxious to put behind them the kind of recrimination and divisiveness you've talked about".

He said the content, nature and extent of the UN role in Iraq would be decided by the members of the Security Council.

He also acknowledged the fact that there would be a problem with countries recognising an interim government and commercial companies doing business with it if it hadn't been sanctioned by the Security Council.

HARDtalk can be watched on BBC World and BBC News 24