The president of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) warned Tuesday that the free and peaceful world envisioned when the U.N. was founded 80 years ago remains far from reality, citing colonial-era legacies, wars and widening human rights violations.
Speaking at the 80th anniversary commemoration and opening of the General Assembly, Annalena Baerbock said “colonialism is still prevalent” in today’s world, with powerful countries ignoring dialogue and territorial integrity while fueling conflicts that threaten global peace.
“Instigators of violence through wars remain a collective threat to global peace,” Baerbock told world leaders. While she did not single out specific nations, she cautioned that the U.N. Charter was never intended to see any state suppressed, marginalized or stripped of its rights.
Baerbock argued that modern wars often serve as renewed forms of colonial control. She pointed to children scavenging in Gaza, ongoing fighting in Ukraine, sexual violence in Sudan, gangs in Haiti and climate-driven crises worldwide as proof of how instability continues to erode freedoms.
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“Is this the world envisioned in our Charter? Do we really need to relearn the hard lessons?” she asked.
Her remarks echoed a common refrain during the opening week: that the U.N., born from the destruction of World War II, faces an existential test of relevance as it struggles to respond to some of the worst humanitarian and security crises in decades.
Baerbock framed the anniversary under the theme “Better Together,” calling it a principle rather than a slogan.
“Better Together means to act where action is hard. To choose dialogue and diplomacy,” she said. “Hope at this 80th anniversary means this session is not remembered only for speeches, but for resolve equal to the challenges we face.”
She praised aid workers in Gaza, teachers in Afghanistan and peacekeepers in conflict zones as proof the U.N.’s mission remains alive even when diplomacy falters.
U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres reinforced the theme, stressing that the institution’s spirit “lives in every peacekeeper, every humanitarian worker, every diplomat who chooses dialogue over discord.”
He acknowledged obstacles — deep divisions in the Security Council, surging nationalism and waning faith in multilateralism — but urged leaders to protect the “living legacy” of the U.N.
The war in Gaza loomed heavily. Guterres told Al Jazeera that history would remember the U.N.’s defense of Palestinian rights and the heavy toll on its staff, with 400 U.N. personnel killed in Gaza.
Meanwhile, the war in Ukraine remained another unresolved crisis. Russia’s invasion has drawn billions of dollars in Western military support for Kyiv while exposing the limits of U.N. diplomacy, given Moscow’s veto power on the Security Council.
Conflicts in Sudan, South Sudan, Nigeria and the Sahel also underscored Africa’s persistent instability. Critics said the U.N. Security Council’s composition — with five permanent members wielding veto power — leaves smaller nations vulnerable while arms sales and resource interests fuel conflicts.
“The only success of the U.N. is that there has not been a world war since 1945. Everything else is business,” Nigerian national Peter Chukuemeka told The Liberian Investigator, blaming foreign powers for financing armed groups across Africa.
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Former U.S. President Donald J. Trump sharply criticized the U.N., calling it ineffective and dismissing global climate initiatives as a “con job.” He claimed, without evidence, that he had resolved multiple international conflicts and accused the organization of doing “nothing” to end wars in Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine.
Trump condemned nations recognizing Palestine’s statehood, declaring they “will all go to hell.” His remarks drew a swift rebuke from Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who accused Trump of interfering in Brazil’s politics and imposing unfair tariffs.
For many observers, the anniversary served less as a celebration than a reckoning. From Gaza to Ukraine, Sudan to Haiti, the crises laid bare both the necessity of the U.N. and the limits of its power.
Baerbock urged leaders not to abandon hope. “The flag of our United Nations is not perfect, not finished — but always better together,” she said.
