UN Costs Fortune

Police Department Providing Millions of Dollars Worth of Security Detail for UN General Assembly
Monday, September 20, 2010
By Ailsa Chang

Police Commissioner Ray Kelly says the city spends between five to seven million dollars each year protecting dignitaries who attend the United Nations General Assembly.

"We certainly supplement what the federal government is doing," says Kelly. "The Secret Service is here. They bring in other federal agencies to help them and of course, we provide probably the vast majority of security that's being given in the city."

Kelly says the UN General Assembly draws 191 dignitaries to New York City who each need their own security detail. The State Department provides some reimbursement for the city's efforts in providing protection.

I remember UN 25, the first time we protected all of those foreign heads of state who attended the 25th meeting of the UN General Assembly. And of course there were other lower ranked attendees who were supposedly protected by the State Department SY, but often they fell under our "umbrella of security" if traveling with the Head of State. We were kept very busy with this new assignment.

A great fringe benefit of the duty for me as a history buff was reporting to the New York National Guard Armory that was a source of part of the Army's Rainbow Division and seeing reminders of past conflicts in WWi and WWII, including flags adorned with battle ribbons. There was also a memorial there to Joyce Kilmer, poet/author of "Trees," a member of the Division who was killed in WWI.

It was hard work dealing with so many protectees for the first time since passage of the law mandating USSS protection for foreign heads of state, but it was an interesting assignment.

I remember UN 25, the first time we protected all of those foreign heads of state who attended the 25th meeting of the UN General Assembly. And of course there were other lower ranked attendees who were supposedly protected by the State Department SY, but often they fell under our "umbrella of security" if traveling with the Head of State. We were kept very busy with this new assignment.

A great fringe benefit of the duty for me as a history buff was reporting to the New York National Guard Armory that was a source of part of the Army's Rainbow Division and seeing reminders of past conflicts in WWi and WWII, including flags adorned with battle ribbons. There was also a memorial there to Joyce Kilmer, poet/author of "Trees," a member of the Division who was killed in WWI.

It was hard work dealing with so many protectees for the first time since passage of the law mandating USSS protection for foreign heads of state, but it was an interesting assignment.

I remember it well. It was the genesis of SA Capizzi.