The United States has joined the 47-member United Nations Human Rights Council for the first time.
U.S.diplomats Friday pledged to work constructively with other councilmembers on behalf of the word's persecuted and abused people.
Thetop diplomat at the U.S. mission to the United Nations in Geneva, MarkStorella, said the United States is joining the three-year-old body inthe spirit of cooperation.
The U.S. was elected to theGeneva-based council last month, after the Obama administration decidedto pursue a council seat. The Bush administration previously hadboycotted the organization, saying the U.N. rights body focused toomuch on criticizing Israel, while ignoring human rights abuses in Sudanand elsewhere.
President Barack Obama announced what he called a "new era of engagement" when he took office.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said human rights are an essential element of U.S. foreign policy.
TheU.N. Human Rights Council was formed in 2006 to take the place of theU.N. Commission on Human Rights, an organization that critics said wasineffective. The council is an inter-governmental body within the U.N.system.