Indeed it is neither necessary nor appropriate that the UN itself take on the job of asteroid defense. What it can reasonably and appropriately do is say to nat

Indeed it is neither necessary nor appropriate that the UN itself take on the job of asteroid defense. What it can reasonably and appropriately do is say to national governments such as the US and Russia, which possess space agencies, "hey, it would be good if you guys could get something moving on this" and "if it would help to have a forum for international coordination of efforts, that's what we're here for".