At Heads of State, Government Lunch, Secretary-General Toasts to Creating ‘An Earth on Which We All Can Live in Peace and in Prosperity’

Following is UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ toast at the luncheon for Heads of State and Government, in New York today:

It is wonderful to be again together in New York.  This city is a wonderful city, a wonderful inspiration for us all.  And I think if there is a privilege to be Secretary‑General of the United Nations, [it] is to be able to work in New York.

I know Mr. President [Donald Trump], New York is your city; you are a New Yorker.  And indeed, that inspiration is vital for the success of our world.  On the other hand, we have many other sources of inspiration coming from your country, the United States of America.  The Charter of the United Nations starts with a sentence, “we the peoples”.  That is exactly the sentence with which your Constitution starts.

And on the other hand, if we are going to celebrate next year, the seventy‑fifth anniversary of the United Nations, I would like to remind us all that we are celebrating this year, the fiftieth anniversary of the moon landings, I’m sure one of the most remarkable achievements of humankind in the world.

Now, after the moon landing, immediately after, the astronauts came to the United Nations, and the crowd was so big that they had to go to the North Lawn.  And there, Neil Armstrong — that was a man that wouldn't speak very much, but usually very wise in what he would say — said the following sentence that I would dare to read to all of you, and I am quoting:

“I can tell that you share with us the hope that we — citizens of the Earth — who can solve the problems of leaving Earth can also solve the problems of living on it.”

I think that these words are also a fantastic inspiration for what we have to do: create together an Earth on which we all can live in peace and in prosperity.

And I would like to raise my glass to the hospitality, warm hospitality, of our host city and host country, New York and the United States, and to the well‑being and prosperity of we the peoples of the world.  Cheers!