Summary Trump will also discuss efforts to prevent the U.N. and other globalist institutions from infringing on American sovereignty.
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres pleaded for “a world built on interdependence” as he made his final address Tuesday to a yearly gathering of world leaders convening to face a formidable menu of challenges — from climate change and war to inequality and artificial intelligence.
The U.N. leader has long implored leaders not to give up on cooperation and shared decision-making in the face of accelerating global challenges and increasing great-powers competition. Tuesday’s message at the U.N. General Assembly took on additional urgency because he leaves office at the end of this year.
“The fault lines in our world are widening,” he said, citing raging wars, risingtemperatures and artificial intelligence, among other matters. Instead of letting the future continue to veer toward fragmentation, transactionalism and mistrust, he called for “a world built on interdependence – and sustained by a dense web of economic, political, social and technological connections.”
His speech opened the main portion of the world’s biggest diplomatic meeting of the year. Leaders from the U.N.'s 193 member countries address each other and the international community and air their hopes, plans and grievances.
Guterres also rebuked might-makes-right thinking, telling superpowers to recognize “that their power isn’t so super.” Recent years have made it clear that “military power alone cannot secure peace,” he said.
The annual high-level gathering at the U.N. General Assembly will be consumed with wars in Iran, Gaza, Ukraine,Sudan, Congo and Myanmar and a persisting question: Can the leaders do anything to end them?
And what can they do about the relentless rise of global warming threatening the future of the planet, the growing inequalities within and among nations, and shocks to the global economy as blocked shipping routes and supply chains increase the cost of living and slow growth?
It is power U.S. President Donald Trump will speak of later Tuesday morning. He will explain how he’s using American power to confront longstanding challenges and reshape the world to benefit America, according to a White House official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to preview Trump’s prepared remarks.
Trump will also discuss efforts to prevent the U.N. and other globalist institutions from infringing on American sovereignty.
The future of the United Nations will also be on the agenda. At 81, its powers are still the victorious nations from World War II, not the 21st century’s major global players. The U.N.’s 193 member nations have agreed to a wide-ranging reform package that includes updating key institutions such as the powerful U.N. Security Council, where the U.S., Russia, China, Britain and France hold inordinate sway because of their veto power. Reform, however, is easier said than implemented.
Behind the scenes, there will be speculation about who will lead the United Nations next. Guterres’ second five-year term ends Dec. 31 and no clear successor has emerged.
Guterres closed his speech by acknowledging the forthcoming departure and vowing to “never, ever give up” on the values for which the U.N. stands.
“Wherever I will be, whatever I will be doing, I will keep championing the conviction that peace is possible,” he said, before leaving the rostrum amid a sustained, standing ovation. He put his hand on his heart.
