UNITED NATIONS – The American ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton, threatened “consequences” yesterday if Secretary-General Annan declines to publicly repudiate criticism of America’s foreign policy made in a speech Tuesday by the second in command at Turtle Bay, Mark Malloch Brown.

Mr. Annan declined to defuse the tension between the United Nation’s leadership and America by saying he stands behind his deputy’s remarks.

Several sources who spoke on condition of anonymity told The New York Sun that Mr. Annan had seen the speech prior to its delivery.” Mr. Annan was very much aware of what was in the speech,” Mr. Annan’s spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, confirmed last night.

Mr. Malloch Brown yesterday intensified his attack on American attitudes to the United Nations, while denying his speech was anti-American or that he was tilted toward one side in America’s internal politics, in violation of U.N. staff rules.

The confrontation between Turtle Bay’s leadership and Mr. Bolton, who characterized Mr. Malloch Brown’s speech as “condescending and patronizing” toward Americans, took place as the United Nations was gearing up for a fight over its budget and while Congress intensified its campaign to change the organization significantly before agreeing to provide more funds.

Speaking to a group of mostly Democratic foreign policy thinkers Tuesday, Mr. Malloch Brown accused American administrations of using the United Nations “almost by stealth as a diplomatic tool,” while at the same time “failing to stand up for it against its domestic critics.”

Yesterday, Mr. Malloch Brown told reporters that his views “are much more widely held than by me alone.” Nevertheless, he said, they are rarely heard in “the heartland,” where the press that is identified with conservative causes, such as Fox News and Rush Limbaugh, is the only voice heard.

American legislators were puzzled. Senator Coleman, a Republican of Minnesota, called Mr. Malloch Brown’s remarks “stunning and sad.”

“Maybe this is simply his recognition that reform will not happen, and then he will accuse the United States” of failure, Mr. Coleman told the Sun. “Nothing in this speech is going to provide any support” for legislators like him who favor a strong United Nations, he added.

Mr. Coleman said he did not know how an idea the Bush administration has advocated – extending a deadline for the U.N. Secretariat be able to spend money for 90 days beyond June 30 – would now be perceived on Capitol Hill, which has to approve the spending. The plan is about to be debated by the General Assembly.

Mr. Malloch Brown, a former director of the U.N. Development Program, was brought into Mr. Annan’s inner circle last year after a meeting that took place in the apartment of a former American ambassador to the United Nations, Richard Holbrooke. Mr. Malloch Brown was hailed for his press savvy and his good connections in Washington.

Since then, however, he has had well publicized run-ins with several press critics, and his Washington contacts have proved to be mostly Democrats. Republicans were irked at his close ties with his landlord, the financier George Soros, who last year reportedly financed a campaign to oppose the nomination of Mr. Bolton as U.N. ambassador.

Mr. Malloch Brown “has unfortunately misinterpreted United States objectives at the United Nations,” Rep. Henry Hyde, a Republican of Illinois who serves as the chairman of the House International Relations Committee, said in a statement yesterday. “Linking U.S. contributions to the U.N. with essential U.N. reforms is not ‘unchecked U.N.-bashing and stereotyping,’ but an effort to induce reforms that will allow the United Nations to serve its invaluable function.”

America is responsible for 22% of Turtle Bay’s operating budget and is the largest contributor of U.N. funds. Japan, the second largest, with 19%, has already delayed paying its assessed dues, which it traditionally pays by May. Japanese diplomats argued that in lieu of reform, it has become harder for the country to justify Turtle Bay’s expenses to taxpayers.

Mr. Malloch Brown delivered his speech on Tuesday in Manhattan at the invitation of two think tanks close to the Democratic Party, the Century Foundation and the Center for American Progress, which is headed by President Clinton’s top political guru, John Podesta.

“This was not a speech addressed to America at large,” Mr. Malloch Brown told reporters yesterday. “It was a speech addressed to foreign policymakers and political leaders.” Those who heard his speech, however, represented mostly past Democratic policymakers.

U.N. staff rules forbid employees to engage in the politics of a member state. One employee who worked under Mr. Malloch Brown at UNDP, Justin Leites, was cited for “poor judgment” by an internal investigation when he left the organization to work for Senator Kerry’s 2004 presidential campaign.

Mr. Bolton placed a phone call to Mr. Annan yesterday and told him, “I’ve known you since 1989, and I’m telling you this is the worst mistake by a senior U.N. official that I have seen in that entire time,” the ambassador told reporters.

“Even though the target of the speech was the United States, the victim, I fear, will be the United Nations,” Mr. Bolton said. “And even worse was the condescending and patronizing tone about the American people.”

He added, “The only way at this point to mitigate the damage to the United Nations is that Secretary-General Kofi Annan, we think, has to personally and publicly repudiate this speech at the earliest possible opportunity, because otherwise I fear the consequences, not just for the reform effort, but for the organization as a whole.”

Several hours later, Mr. Dujarric delivered his answer. “The secretary-general stands by the deputy secretary-general, and agrees with the thrust of the speech,” he said. “This is not a criticism of the United States, it is a call for greater U.S. involvement in the U.N.”