Omnibus Humanitarian Text Withdrawn after Decades of General Assembly Consensus as Delegates Surmount Divisions to Adopt 3 Texts on Aid Personnel, Disaster Response
As the General Assembly took up a series of resolutions regarding humanitarian and disaster relief assistance, the annual omnibus text on strengthening the coordination of emergency humanitarian assistance was withdrawn — after three decades of consensus adoption — as delegates expressed divisions about the role of the UN in humanitarian work, and what that work should include.
“Our debate today is not only about the role and necessity of humanitarian relief but also about how deeply we believe in this institution and how willing we are” to stand up for its principles, said Annalena Baerbock (Germany), President of the General Assembly, ahead of the joint debate on strengthening coordination of humanitarian and disaster relief assistance.
In a glaring reflection of the increasing contentions within the international community, humanitarian texts that used to be adopted by consensus faced challenges this year, with the omnibus text “Strengthening of the coordination of emergency humanitarian assistance of the United Nations” (document A/80/L.25) taken back by its chief negotiator.
Introducing that text, Sweden’s delegate urged the two delegations that had tabled amendments to withdraw them. She noted that this annual resolution has now enjoyed an impressive 33 years of consensus. “It carries significant weight when Member States come together year after year to send one unified message guiding global humanitarian action,” she said, noting that this year’s negotiations focused on reform efforts laid out by the Emergency Relief Coordinator and the broader UN80 reform initiative. However, negotiations were more difficult than ever, with one delegation requesting changes to over 70 paragraphs of the text. “The text that was tabled constitutes our best attempt at striking a balance between the views expressed between all Member States,” she said.
Citing Untenable Amendments, Sweden Withdraws Draft to Protect Interests of Millions for Whom It Was Tabled
However, those amendments were not withdrawn. The representative of the United States proposed four amendments “to protect the original purpose of this resolution from ideological agendas”. Rejecting terminology around sexual and reproductive healthcare, she said this language carries “highly controversial meanings conflating this term with notions of abortion, LGBTQ and other sexual rights”. Further, the UN has gone “wildly off-track exaggerating climate change into the world's greatest threat”, she said, adding that her delegation is proposing amendments to preambular paragraphs 4 and 15 to address the inappropriate references to climate change.
The representative of the Russian Federation introduced a draft amendment which would insert a new paragraph calling on Member States to refrain from applying any unilateral coercive measures, as they affect social and humanitarian conditions and impact the most vulnerable on the ground.
After these amendments were introduced, Sweden’s delegate withdrew “L.25” to protect the interests of the hundreds of millions for whom it was tabled. She expressed the hope that a better outcome could be achieved if delegates reach agreement on the text as a whole. Responding, the representative of the United States described that text as a “globalist wish-list” that “barreled past the red line concerns of numerous delegations” and stressed that her delegation will continue to stand against it if it comes to the floor again.
Competing Chernobyl Drafts Spark Procedural Disputes
Other divisions emerged as the representatives of Belarus and Ukraine put forward competing texts on the Chernobyl disaster, as well as amendments to each other’s texts. Introducing its texts, Ukraine’s delegate said that “Belarus has lost any moral standing to initiate UN General Assembly resolutions relating to the Chernobyl issue”, while Belarus’s delegate said his delegation has never renounced its penholdership of the annual Chernobyl text. The representative of Ukraine also requested via point of order that its draft resolution be considered first. However, Belarus’s representative said his delegation put forward a text first and should be considered first, lest procedural manipulation leads to “legal nihilism”.
By a recorded vote of 56 in favour to 17 against, with 63 abstentions, the Assembly decided to consider the text put forward by Ukraine first. That text, “Strengthening of international cooperation and coordination of efforts to study, mitigate and minimize the consequences of the Chornobyl disaster” (document A/80/L.27), was then adopted by a recorded vote of 97 in favour to 8 against (Belarus, China, Cuba, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Nicaragua, Niger, Russian Federation and United States) with 39 abstentions.
By its terms, the Assembly would encourage Member States and others to support international cooperation in Chornobyl aimed at achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and request the Assembly President to convene a special commemorative meeting on 24 April 2026 to mark the fortieth anniversary of that disaster.
Prior to its adoption, the Assembly considered an amendment proposed by Belarus (document A/80/L.35), which was defeated by a recorded vote of 16 in favour to 58 against with 61 abstentions. If adopted, it would have changed the spelling of “Chornobyl” to “Chernobyl” in the resolution’s title, deleted “of Ukraine” in the second preambular paragraph, and deleted several operative paragraphs.
Ukraine’s delegate raised a point of order to say that with the adoption of the text it put forward, there is no need to consider Belarus’s resolution on the same topic. The representatives of the Belarus and Russian Federation delegations disagreed. Ukraine’s motion was adopted by a recorded vote of 52 in favour to 23 against with 60 abstentions; therefore, the Assembly did not consider the text put forward by Belarus, titled “Persistent legacy of the Chernobyl disaster” (document A/80/L.3) or the amendment proposed by Ukraine (document A/80/L.28).
Debate Intensifies over Safety of Humanitarian and UN Personnel
The Assembly also adopted a text concerning “Safety and security of humanitarian personnel and protection of United Nations personnel” (document A/80/L.18) by a recorded vote of 153 in favour to 1 against (United States) with 6 abstentions (Burundi, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Fiji, Israel, Papua New Guinea, Russian Federation).
Denmark’s delegate, speaking for the European Union and introducing the text, stressed that “humanitarian workers are the unsung heroes of our era”. Highlighting the alarming levels of violence faced by United Nations and humanitarian personnel, and the particular vulnerability of national and locally recruited staff, she said, increasingly, attacks are perpetrated not only by non-State armed groups, but also by State actors. This year marks the twenty-seventh consecutive year that the Union facilitates the resolution, she said, adding that the text identifies the risks to humanitarian personnel and acknowledges the increasingly complex, high-risk environments in which they operate. “The text now underscores the responsibilities of host States to ensure the safety and security of humanitarian and UN personnel”, she added.
Prior to its adoption, the Assembly voted on two draft amendments to that text, proposed by the Russian Federation. The first proposed amendment (document A/80/L.19) was defeated by a recorded vote of 14 in favour to 84 against with 47 abstentions. If adopted, it would have deleted preambular paragraph 38 of the text, which refers to attacks against humanitarian personnel as war crimes under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. The second proposed amendment (document A/80/L.20) was defeated by a recorded vote of 15 in favour to 83 against with 43 abstentions — if adopted, it would have deleted operative paragraph 9.
Also taking a recorded vote today was the draft resolution entitled “International cooperation on humanitarian assistance in the field of natural disasters, from relief to development” (document A/80/L.23), which was introduced by Iraq’s delegate on behalf of the Group of 77 and China. “We regret that despite very minimal non-substantive changes made to the text, the resolution will nonetheless be put to a vote. This resolution has traditionally been adopted by consensus and enjoyed broad support,” he said.
That text was adopted by a recorded vote of 162 in favour to 1 against (United States) with 0 abstentions. By its terms, the Assembly stressed the need to continue effective cooperation among the affected States, relevant bodies of the United Nations system, donor countries and other relevant stakeholders throughout relief operations and medium- and long-term rehabilitation and reconstruction efforts. It also urged the prioritization of risk management and a shift towards an anticipatory approach to humanitarian crises.
Focus Shifts to Disaster Response — With a Call to Unite or Risk Becoming ‘Divided Nations’
In the general debate held before the action, several speakers stressed that humanitarian action should not be politicized and drew attention to the dire situation in different parts of the world. The representative of the European Union, in her capacity as observer, voiced concern over the record number of attacks against humanitarian personnel in 2025. “This sobering reality puts millions of lives at risk, triggering a massive humanitarian crisis around the globe,” she said. The European Union provides over 40 per cent of global humanitarian funding. She also praised Sweden’s leadership on the omnibus humanitarian text and expressed support for that delegation’s “difficult decision to preserve the integrity of the text” and withdraw it from consideration.
The representative of Venezuela, speaking for the Group of Friends in Defense of the Charter of the United Nations, highlighted the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and condemned Israel’s actions. The recent rise in extreme natural disasters has been driven, among others, by an unsustainable model of environmental exploitation and wealth concentration. Further, humanitarian crises have also been fueled by “politically driven actions linked to hegemonic ambitions”, he said, as he condemned the United States military buildup in the Caribbean, the continued threats against his country and unilateral coercive measures imposed for political purposes.
Several delegates, including the representatives of the United Kingdom and Indonesia, expressed concern about the record number of humanitarian deaths. The representatives of Morocco and Qatar were among those who stressed the need for humanitarian assistance to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Poland’s delegate reminded delegates that the United Nations is not in damage control, it is in the “hope business”. The international community needs to do everything possible to prevent the United Nations from becoming “divided nations”, he said.
Complete Live Blog coverage of today's meeting can be found here.