Amid Rise in Conflict, Distrust among Nations, Stronger Multilateral System Led by United Nations Needed More than Ever, World Leaders Tell General Assembly
In a world racked by increasing conflict and distrust among nations, three world leaders told the General Assembly today that a robust multilateralism system led by the United Nations is more needed than ever.
Sergio Mattarella, President of Italy and current President of the Group of Seven (G7), said that the UN is the only global platform capable of responding to today’s international challenges and needs adequate funding by its 193 Member States. “The increase in regional conflicts underscores its crucial role in supporting humanity,” he said, adding that Italy fully supports the Secretary-General’s reform efforts. The upcoming Summit for the Future will be an opportunity to successfully reform the international global architecture, and the Pact for the Future — to be endorsed by Heads of State and Government at the Summit in September — must guarantee a role for all countries and regional groups in that process. “The time has come to design an Organization based on peace,” he said.
As a universal and legitimate platform to deal with international challenges, the United Nations functioning is sometimes legitimately criticized, he said. Yet it is asked to do more as its resources are not enhanced. While the UN Charter and the 1948 Declaration of Human Rights have helped to maintain peace, today diehard nationalism, neocolonialism and competition are harming the quality of relations among nations. “Now more than ever, it is necessary to strengthen international relations,” he said.
Accepted into the UN in 1955 after rising from the tragedy of the Second World War, Italy remains committed to multilateralism and fostering cooperation to forge a fair, sustainable world in which the rights of all people are recognized, he said. The fundamental principles of Italy’s 1948 constitution mirror the goals of the UN: to promote peace and justice among nations and advance the international organizations that help achieve these goals. Italy is proud to host UN offices throughout the country and promotes universal values by supporting dialogue, post-conflict processes, and the rights of young people and women, he said. His country also contributes to UN resources, including by providing military contingents that maintain peace around the world.
Pointing to the Russian aggression against Ukraine, he said Italy and others are committed to that country’s defense. “Russia has brought war back to the European continent,” he said, noting that conflict was started by a permanent member of the Security Council and reaches beyond the region. The Russian Federation has “turned back time” and started a global arms race while creating a food crisis that goes beyond Ukraine. Italy and other international partners are committed to achieving a long-lasting solution to this conflict, he said, stressing that peace must be fair, long-lasting and based on international principles and the UN Charter. Clashes in the Middle East also call for greater attention by the international community and a solution that will lead to a stable peace. On that, he envisaged a goal of the two States of Palestine and Israel. The huge suffering of Gaza civilians must be relieved and military operations in Rafah must be avoided, he stressed.
Secretary-General António Guterres told delegates that Italy has been a champion of the United Nations and international cooperation for many years. The Mediterranean country has played a pivotal role in fostering dialogue, understanding and collaboration among peoples and nations. At the UN, Italy has consistently demonstrated its leadership in defending peace, human rights and sustainable development by hosting many UN bodies and deploying its forces in peacekeeping missions. “Today, these shared values are under threat,” he said. “As our human family faces growing conflict, a climate crisis, growing inequalities, and disruptive technologies… one thing is clear: We are not prepared.” Noting that the global financial architecture is outdated, dysfunctional and unjust, he said these institutions were created nearly 80 years ago when many Members States were under colonial rule.
“They do not represent today’s world — and they cannot deal with today’s new and emerging threats,” he said. “We must come together to urgently reshape and strengthen our multilateral institutions.” The composition and working methods of the Security Council must be changed to make it more inclusive and effective while the international financial architecture, which has failed to provide a global safety net for developing countries, must be strengthened and reformed. The upcoming Summit of the Future is a unique opportunity to update these institutions for the twenty-first century.
The Summit must build on the New Agenda for Peace to boost collective security systems, ensure better representation, and place prevention at the centre of international efforts, he went on. As discussions ahead of the Summit enter a key phase, Italy’s voice is critical to bridge divides, build trust and find solutions. The country’s priorities as G7 President — defence of the rules-based international system, dialogue with the Global South and “human-centred” artificial intelligence governance — echo this vision. He said the G7 has a special responsibility to lead reform efforts for a more equitable and effective multilateralism, and he counted on Italy’s leadership of the G7 this year to steer developed countries towards these reforms.
Dennis Francis (Trinidad and Tobago), President of the Assembly’s seventy-eighth session, said the vision of his presidency is anchored in inclusive diplomacy and dialogue as cornerstones of stronger international cooperation among equally sovereign States. These values have guided the Organization for nearly 80 years and the international system established after the Second World War has prevented major military conflicts and averted a nuclear catastrophe among the great Powers. Yet the vision of a seamlessly functioning multilateral system has yet to be fully achieved and today’s system is beleaguered by a myriad of interconnected challenges. These create a real dilemma for collective efforts to secure sustained global peace and security.
“Today, more than ever, we need a robust UN-led multilateral system capable of confronting global challenges,” he said. Effective and inclusive international cooperation is imperative to achieve the Organization’s goals, including the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Summit of the Future can address the crises of multilateralism by modernizing outdated international institutions and global governance. As intergovernmental negotiations move ahead on the Pact for the Future, he urged all Member States to compromise and work constructively to redefine multilateral cooperation in an increasingly multipolar twenty-first century. “Reform is crucial to restoring the credibility and legitimacy of our multilateral system — and will require, at the very least, a renewed commitment to the foundational principles of the UN Charter by the Member States themselves, working together with relevant stakeholders,” he said.
Also today, at an earlier meeting, the Assembly adopted two drafts without a vote.
Through one draft resolution (document A/78/L.56), the Assembly decided to proclaim 25 May as World Football Day, noting that 2024 marks the hundredth anniversary of the first international football tournament in history as part of the 1924 Summer Olympic Games held in Paris, with the representation of all regions.
The representative of Libya, who introduced the text, noted that more than 160 countries have co-sponsored the text, declaring: “Let us all be united and celebrate this day around the world and mobilize the power of this game, to bring joy and happiness and to bring people together beyond borders and politics and serve humanity.”
Israel’s delegate, speaking in a point of order in an apparent response to the State of Palestine co-sponsoring that text, said that paragraph five of the annex of General Assembly resolution 52/250 (1998), titled “Participation of Palestine in the work of the United Nations”, determined that Palestine has the right to co-sponsor draft resolutions and decisions on Palestinian and Middle East issues. Circumventing the rules of co-sponsorship laid out in the rules and regulations governing this Organization would only undermine this institution, she said.
The Assembly also adopted a draft decision (document A/78/L.63) to postpone the third United Nations Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries — scheduled to be held from 18 to 21 June 2024 in Kigali — to a later date and that the second session of the Preparatory Committee for the Conference shall be postponed to 3 to 5 June 2024.