By Judy Aita
Washington File United Nations Correspondent

United Nations -- John C. Danforth, President Bush's nominee to be the chief U.S. delegate to the United Nations, would bring a wide variety of experience in government, law, religion, and public service to the job of representing the United States at the world organization.

John Claggett Danforth, 68, has had a distinguished public service career, serving as the attorney general of Missouri and then as a U.S. senator between 1969 and 1995. He is a partner in a St. Louis-Washington, D.C., law firm and President Bush's special envoy to Sudan. An ordained Episcopal minister, Danforth officiated at the recent funeral of the late President Ronald Reagan.

As senator, Danforth served on the Finance Committee; the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee; and the Select Committee on Intelligence. During his senate career, he worked to expand U.S. exports and to remove foreign trade barriers to U.S. goods and services, was a sponsor of many aviation laws, and sponsored the Civil Rights Act of 1991.

In 1999 then-Attorney General Janet Reno appointed Danforth as a special counsel to investigate the 1993 deaths of 80 Branch Davidians in Waco, Texas.

The current U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, John Negroponte, called Danforth "a magnificent choice" for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

Negroponte is leaving the U.N. post to head the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad after the turnover of sovereignty from the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) to the Interim Government of Iraq. He said that Danforth "is just an extraordinarily respected American. He has wonderful government experience, including three terms as a senator. He's worked on the peace process in Sudan, so he's very familiar with some of the recent complex emergencies that the United Nations has been dealing with."

"I don't think the president could have made a better choice," Negroponte said.

Danforth will be arriving in New York during a period of intense interchange between the United States and the United Nations. The U.N. role in Iraq will be increasing and the organization continues to play a role in other major issues around the world that are also important to the United States, including the Middle East, Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, Liberia, Sierra Leone, counterterrorism, HIV/AIDS, nuclear non-proliferation, human rights, drugs and trafficking in persons.

The United Nations plays a vital role in U.S. foreign policy issues, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs Kim R. Holmes has said. "Ever since the president went to the General Assembly (in 2002) and challenged the United Nations on Iraq and, generally, to live up to its founding principles, we have seen the United Nations at the center of almost every major U.S. foreign policy issue."

At his recent Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing, Danforth said that "the breadth and scope of the activities of the United Nations concern U.S. interests and activities around the globe and affect the daily lives of average U.S. citizens. The U.S. vision of global stability, democracy for more and more people who long for freedom and expanding prosperity guide the work of the United States Mission to the United Nations."

One of his highest priorities as ambassador will be to work for a resolution of the situation in Darfur, Sudan, Danforth said.

"A comprehensive peace accord cannot be implemented if the situation in Darfur is not resolved," Danforth said. "The United States has led the international community in reacting to the violence and atrocities taking place in Darfur. We have made it clear that we hold the Sudanese Government responsible for its support of the Arab 'jingaweit' militia and its systematic targeting of African ethnic groups."

On counter-terrorism, the U.N. with its 191 member countries "has the stature and global reach to advance the fight against terrorism in important ways," Danforth told the committee.

"The U.N. can -- and must -- keep the world community focused and energized for the long battle ahead. The U.N. must continue to make clear to the world that acts of international terrorism simply cannot be justified or tolerated," he said. "Our challenge is to ensure that counter-terrorism remains at the top tier of the U.N.'s agenda, and that all member states are engaged in the fight."

U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan has appointed a high-level independent panel to investigate allegations of corruption and bribery during the 10 years the United Nations administered the Oil-for-Food Program in Iraq. The program used the proceeds from Iraqi oil sales to provide humanitarian assistance to Iraqi civilians. The panel is headed by former U.S. Federal Reserve Board Chairman Paul Volcker.

Danforth said the United States "strongly supports the ongoing investigations" and will continue to cooperate with the investigators.

"We will do all we can to push for a full and effective accounting," he said. "We will continue to work with Mr. Volcker and with Congress to gain the fullest possible access to the records necessary for the investigation."

Danforth also told the Senate that he "strongly supports U.N. peacekeeping.

"The peacekeeping activities of the United Nations further the goals of the U.N. Charter and, more importantly, further the national interests of the United States," he said. "U.N. peacekeeping operations promote regional stability, facilitate humanitarian assistance, and prevent ethnic cleansing."

The United States is the largest single contributor to U.N. peacekeeping operations with the U.S. contribution in 2004 reaching $795 million. Costs are expected to rise in 2005 because new operations will reach full strength in such places as Liberia and Haiti, and other operations are being considered for Burundi and the Sudan.

"I consider the money well spent," Danforth said. "Were it not for U.N. peacekeeping, there would be even more numerous calls for the use of U.S. troops abroad to help keep the peace at a time when the demands on our troops are already high."

Danforth is also chairman emeritus of the World Agricultural Forum, which is an independent, not-for-profit organization that brings together global leaders and others to advance solutions to the critical issues facing the agricultural community. He has received the Woodrow Wilson Award for Outstanding Public Service, the Presidential World Without Hunger Award, and the 2003 Award for Excellence of Diplomacy from the American Academy of Diplomacy in recognition of his achievements as special envoy to the Sudan.

He received his undergraduate degree from Princeton University and his law degree from Yale University. He holds a bachelor of divinity degree from Yale Divinity School.