In General Assembly Meeting Marking Eightieth Anniversary of Second World War, Speakers Urge Recommitment to Multilateralism as Conflicts Continue Raging Worldwide
Marking the eightieth anniversary of the end of the Second World War, speakers in the General Assembly today paid solemn tribute to the millions who gave their lives in defense of “freedoms too often taken for granted” and underscored the urgent need to recommit to multilateralism, as conflicts continue to rage from the Middle East to Ukraine.
Against the backdrop of mounting geopolitical tensions, they recalled the founding vision of the United Nations — to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war — and called for renewed collective action to uphold peace, security, and human dignity.
The United Nations founders were not “naive idealists”, but “practitioners of statecraft, tested by conflict and forged by history”, said General Assembly President Philemon Yang (Cameroon) in his opening remarks to the commemorative meeting. When they conceived the Organization’s Charter, they knew that peace would not sustain itself, he observed, emphasizing: “It would require structure. It would require vigilance. And above all, it would require shared responsibility.”
Multilateralism under Acute Strain
The multilateral system established after the war is “far from perfect”, but undoubtedly “made the world a safer and more prosperous place” and facilitated international cooperation and development, said the representative of New Zealand, speaking also for Australia and Canada. However, multilateralism is “under acute strain”, she observed, urging all to work together based on the ensuring foundation of the UN Charter.
“The legacy of the Second World War compels us to renew and deepen international cooperation, grounded in mutual respect, sovereign equality, and the inalienable rights of all nations, especially in an era where unilateralism and exceptionalism re-emerge in new and troubling forms,” added Venezuela’s delegate, speaking on behalf of the Group of Friends in Defense of the Charter of the United Nations.
Focus on Nazi Germany
The war unleashed by Nazi Germany caused immeasurable suffering in Europe and beyond and “that legacy of pain, destruction and loss will forever be tied to my country’s name”, said Germany’s delegate, stressing that her country carries this burden with humility and a moral responsibility. “We accept it without hesitation,” she said, noting that the Nuremberg Trials marked a turning point in international law and laid the foundation for transitional justice. Many milestones have since been reached in her country’s history, she said, highlighting its friendly relations with its neighbors.
Many delegates reflected on their nations’ roles in the defeat of Nazism, with the representative of the Russian Federation recalling that “the red banner of victory was raised” over the Reichstag in Berlin on 1 May 1945, marking humanity’s step back from “the abyss of the theory of racial superiority”. That ideology, he stressed, was not merely the product of Hitler’s fantasies, but rooted in colonialist racism propagated by European intellectuals — later intensified by Nazi anti-Semitism and anti-Slavism. Decrying the removal of monuments honoring Soviet soldiers, he firmly rejected any attempts to erase or diminish their sacrifice in achieving victory.
Condemnation of Russian Federation’s War of Aggression against Ukraine
“The European Union is itself a peace project, created in the aftermath of the Second World War to ensure armed conflict would never again be used as alternative to dialogue,” said the representative of the bloc, in its capacity as observer. He dismissed the Russian Federation’s remarks as a “flood of historical distortions” as well as hateful speech and divisive rhetoric and condemned its war of aggression against Ukraine.
Ukraine’s delegate recalled that totalitarian regimes in Berlin and Moscow jointly invaded Poland in 1939. “We must never forget that the Soviet Union collaborated with Nazi Germany at the start of the war,” she said. While attempting to monopolize the memory of victory over Nazism, the Russian Federation has, since 2014, waged a full-scale war against Ukraine — committing the very crimes it once claimed to oppose. “We must prevent Russia from stealing our memory, appropriating our collective victory, or manipulating history to justify aggression and crimes against Ukraine and its people,” she emphasized.
The war’s end unfortunately brought “Soviet domination behind the iron curtain”, added Poland’s delegate, warning that once again, peace in Europe is overshadowed by the brutal war of aggression waged by the Russian Federation against Ukraine.
“30,000 of the finest sons and daughters of the Turkmenistan” went to the front, said the country’s representative. The Ashgabat railway transformed into a key route for delivery of supplies, while “women contributed silver and gold” to the war effort, she added. In the face of terrorism, violence and propaganda it is essential to protect the peace that was won at such high cost.
Contributions of Commonwealth of Independent States to Soviet Union’s Victory against Nazi
Tajikistan’s delegate, speaking on behalf of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), rejected attempts revise and distort the outcomes of the Second World War, including the contributions of CIS to the Soviet Union’s victory against Nazis. He noted this year’s events in support of veterans and educational programmes to preserve historical memory. Similarly, the representative of Belarus, recalling that “at least 12,300 of our villages were destroyed by the hands of the Nazis and their accomplices”, said that over the past five years, several important steps have been taken at the State level to perpetuate the memory of the victims of the war and preserve the historical truth and memory.
“Too often, the story of the Holocaust is told from the moment the gates of Auschwitz opened, but that is not where it began,” said Israel’s representative, adding: “The Holocaust did not start in the gas chambers […] It began with words, with lies, with a slow, steady normalization of Jew hatred.” He warned that hate is again gaining momentum and 2025 is witnessing “an explosion of antisemitism that is impossible to ignore”. Similarly, the speaker for the United States said: “‘Never again’ means now, as we confront the worst outbreak of antisemitism in generations.” The memory of the Second World War must also be a time to honor the enormous sacrifices of the Allied Forces, which fought against the Axis Powers. “One of the lessons is this: tyranny and aggression will be met with resistance and justice,” she said.
Current Plight of Palestinians in Occupied Gaza and West Bank
Cuba’s delegate said that the genesis of the Second World War was influenced by expansionism and xenophobia, adding that the genocide perpetrated by Israel against the Palestinian people, with the United States’ complicity, is a new and repulsive form of fascism. Cuba, “which knows well the cost of colonialism, interference and war”, will continue to work for a culture of peace, he said.
The representative of Egypt also highlighted the plight of Palestinians in the occupied territories of Gaza and the West Bank whose basic rights have been deprived, urging States to use this anniversary to renew commitment to upholding multilateralism and support the UN in carrying out its mandate, in particular maintaining international peace and security, promoting humanitarian action and preserving human rights and human dignity without double standards and selectivity.
Sacrifice of Asian Soldiers During Second World War
The representative of the Philippines recalled that Manila, then a bustling metropolis, was almost unrecognizable after three years of bombardment and fierce urban combat. “We lost more than 100,000 Filipino civilian lives, just for Manila’s freedom,” she said, adding that many of brave soldiers perished as they marched more than 60 miles during the infamous Death March. As a country deeply familiar with the atrocities brought about by war between and among nations, her country has always chosen the path of peace, and will continue to do so through diplomacy, dialogue and cooperation, she pledged.
The speaker for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea said the historical victory of humanity over fascism was won by the joint struggle of the world’s democratic forces, with the Soviet army in the lead. That victory “is also imbued with the blood of Korean people” who made the sacrifice for defeating Japanese imperialism in the eastern battlefield. Condemning attempts to glorify and even revive fascism, he said that Japanese authorities are distorting history while refusing to sincerely apologize and compensate for their colonial rule.
His counterpart from Japan said that in the past eight decades since the founding of the United Nations, his country has walked the path of peace. The current Administration has upheld the positions of previous cabinets and today, “freedom, democracy and fundamental human rights are the unshakable foundation of every decision and action that Japan takes”, he said. Highlighting Tokyo’s efforts to promote nuclear disarmament, he said this year marks the eightieth year since the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Action on Drafts: Opening Statements at Upcoming Third UN Conference of Landlocked Developing Countries
In other business, the Assembly adopted — without a vote — the draft decision (document A/79/L.82) titled “Opening statements at the third United Nations Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries”. By the text, the Assembly decided that statements at the opening will be made by the President of the Conference, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the President of the General Assembly, the President of the Economic and Social Council, the Chair of the Group of Landlocked Developing Countries, a representative of the host country and the Secretary General of the Conference.
Participation of Intergovernmental Organizations in 2025 UN Ocean Conference
The Assembly also adopted — without a vote — the draft decision (document A/79/L.85) titled “Accreditation and participation of intergovernmental organizations in the 2025 United Nations Conference to Support the Implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development”. By the text, the Assembly decided to accredit the organizations identified in the Secretariat note and invite them to participate as intergovernmental organizations in the work of the Conference.
High-level Meeting on Thirtieth Anniversary of Fourth World Conference on Women
The Assembly then turned its attention to the draft resolution (document A/79/L.81) titled “Scope, modalities, format and organization of the high-level meeting on the thirtieth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women”, which was adopted without a vote, following contention over operative paragraph 6 on the participation of non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
By “L.81”, the Assembly decided that the one-day high-level meeting shall be held in New York on Monday, 22 September 2025. Prior to its adoption, the representative of the Russian Federation introduced the draft amendment (document A/79/L.84) to operative paragraph 6, explaining that her delegation favours the non-objection procedure on the list of NGOs without subsequent approval by the Assembly and the presence of civil society as observers.
A non-objection basis is a procedural method used in intergovernmental negotiations, where a decision is considered approved unless one or more parties explicitly object within a set time frame. Some delegates, including those of the European Union, the United Kingdom, Canada and Mexico, opposed the amendment, stating that the participation of an NGO would be blocked by one State, amounting to a veto. They argued that operative paragraph 6 provides a protection against such a move by giving the decision-making power back to the Assembly, rather than any single Member State.
The Assembly rejected the amendment by a recorded vote of 73 against to 15 in favour, with 46 abstentions, and then went on to retain operative paragraph 6 by a recorded vote of 94 in favour to 10 against (Argentina, Belarus, China, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Eritrea, Iran, Nicaragua, Russian Federation, Sudan, Türkiye), with 31 abstentions.