Statement
Statement summary
Annalena Baerbock (Germany), President of the General Assembly, underscored current challenges amid the United Nations’ eightieth anniversary. “This is not an ordinary year,” she said, highlighting the plight of people in crisis zones such as Gaza, Ukraine, Haiti and the Democratic Republic of Congo. She called for the UN to do better and “not let cynics weaponize these failures” by saying that the institution is outdated or irrelevant. She asked whether, when the principles of the UN Charter are ignored, it is the UN that has failed. “It is not the Charter which fails,” nor the UN as an institution, she said. “The Charter is only as strong as Member States’ willingness to uphold it,” and to hold its violators accountable. Imagine how much worse off the world would be without the UN, she emphasized, noting that the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) educates 26 million children and the World Food Programme (WFP) helps nearly 125 million people.
This session is about finding the resolve to be better together. The institution was born “in a world on fire” and since then has been “a compass pointing towards peace, humanity and justice.” It’s story is not one of easy victories, but of falling and rising, of pulling each other back up and trying harder. Today, the United Nations gathers to prove that it — and every nation represented within it — can summon strength and unity first shown in San Francisco 80 years ago. The founders showed that leadership is not about imposing one’s will, but rather, lifting others up — acting from a sense of altruism, mutual benefit and even self-interest. Helping others makes one’s own country stronger — as seen in response to the global pandemic, climate crisis, the development of international aviation safety regulations and efforts to ensure AI does not go unchecked. “In this globalized, digitalized world, we work together — or we suffer alone.”
She introduced the theme of this session, “Better Together: 80 Years and More for Peace, Development and Human Rights”. Living up to that theme will not be easy, but the General Assembly was made to confront the hardest topics and resolve differences. “But, even the house of dialogue and diplomacy needs a renovation,” she stressed, underlining that the UN80 initiative and wider reform process are necessities. She emphasized that it is a make-or-break moment. The General Assembly must deliver an agile, cost-effective and fit-for-purpose institution, with reform in every capital, delivering on the Pact for the Future and accelerating the Sustainable Development Goals, without which there can be no lasting peace. She highlighted the upcoming selection of the next Secretary-General, of which there has never been a woman chosen. It is not only an issue of representation but also of the credibility of the UN, she said.
As the UN marks its 80th anniversary, Member States must show the people of the world why the organization matters and uphold its founding principles in the decades ahead, General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock said on Tuesday.
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>> Read also the UN News story in Hindi, Kiswahili and Urdu about the declaration made by the President of the General Assembly at the General Debate.
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The anniversary should have been a moment of celebration, she noted, but this is not an ordinary year, with conflict and crises in Gaza, Ukraine, Haiti and beyond.
“Faced with these realities, now is not the time to celebrate but to ask ourselves: Where is the United Nations? Clearly, we have to do better,” she said.
Uphold the UN Charter
Ms. Baerbock was adamant that the international community “should not let cynics weaponize these failures” or argue that the institution is a waste of money, outdated and irrelevant.
She stressed that when the principles of the UN Charter are ignored, it is not the document or the UN as an institution that has failed.
“The Charter, our Charter, is only as strong as Member States’ willingness to uphold it. And their willingness to hold to account those who violate it,” she said.
Never give up
While acknowledging that the world is in pain, and that failures have occured, Ms. Baerbock asked leaders to imagine how much worse it would be without the UN.
She highlighted the lifesaving work of agencies such as the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the World Food Programme (WFP), and the World Health Organization (WHO).
“Sometimes we could have done more. But we cannot let this dishearten us. If we stopped doing the right thing, evil would prevail,” she said.
“This 80th session is not about big celebrations. It’s about finding the resolve to not give up. The resolve to be Better Together. Just as our predecessors did eight decades ago.”
From war to peace
The UN was born in the aftermath of two world wars, the horrors of the Holocaust, and when nearly a third of humanity, 750 million people, were still under colonial rule. The signing of the Charter “gave hope to millions,” she said.
“Across the decades, the United Nations has been a compass pointing toward peace, humanity, and justice,” she said.
“We have not always succeeded. But the story of this institution is not a story of easy victories. It’s the story of falling and rising. Of pulling ourselves and each other back up and trying harder.”
Member States have gathered “to prove that this institution matters,” she said.
“And through this institution, every nation represented here – no matter how big or small – can summon again the strength and unity first shown in San Francisco, 80 years ago.”
At a crosswords
Ms. Baerbock observed that the international community is once again standing at a crossroads.
“It is up to us, to every single Member State to live up to the same leadership as our predecessors,” she said.
“To act when action is needed. To uphold the principles of our Charter. To be better together.”
Moreover, they must “show the people around the world that the United Nations is there. Today. Tomorrow. And for the next eight decades,” because it is “the life insurance for every country.”
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