Many but not all see new U.S. style at U.N

By Louis Charbonneau - Analysis

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Western U.N. delegates are heaping praise on the Obama administration for abandoning the Bush administration's confrontational approach, but others complain that the change is merely cosmetic.

Western diplomats based in New York said U.S. President Barack Obama has shown he wants to rebuild bridges with Washington's traditional allies, some of whom complained it was hard to negotiate with U.S. delegations under former President George W. Bush.

Obama's ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, is a refreshing change from some of her recent predecessors, European and other Western diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters .

"There's no more lecturing and dictating," said a European diplomat "You feel that Susan Rice listens, as if she's taking you seriously. That wasn't always the case before."

One senior European diplomat refers to the new U.S. envoy as "Human Rice" -- a play on Rice's stated desire to re-engage in talks on human rights issues at the United Nations and the fact that some diplomats find her pleasant to deal with.

But Rice's job will not be easy. While there is a lot of goodwill towards the new U.S. administration, U.N. diplomats and officials say, U.S. critics like Iran and Libya have secured high-profile positions at key U.N. bodies.

Nicaragua's former Sandinista foreign minister Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann heads the U.N. General Assembly, a post he routinely uses to rail against the United States and Israel. D'Escoto will be succeeded by a Libyan.

During its eight years in office the Bush administration was known for having disdain for the United Nations, preferring to bypass it on issues such as human rights, climate change and disarmament.