UN Organization
UN80 and UN reform at UNGA 81
Raised by 129 of 223 speakers. Read verbatim UN transcript quotes and select a time to hear the speech.
Speeches that raised un80 and un reform
President of the General Assembly (opening) · Day 1Dr. Khalilur RahmanAt that time, he said, and I quote, In recent years, there appears to have been a crisis of confidence in the United Nations itself.
There is a general feeling that the United Nations today needs revitalizing in a number of aspects in order to bring it into line with the priorities of a changing world.
That was 40 years ago.
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Kyrgyzstan · Day 1Sadyr ZhaparovMr. President, Mr. Secretary-General, distinguished heads of delegations, ladies and gentlemen.
At the outset of my speech, I would like to sincerely congratulate Mr. Halilovic on being elected as the President of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly and wish him further success.
As you are all aware, last year the international community marked the 80th anniversary of the United Nations.
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Dominica · Day 1Sylvanie BurtonThe United Nations provides shelter and protection to people enduring conflict displacement, and natural disaster.
It supports education, healthcare, peacekeeping, elections, and development in communities that might otherwise be forgotten.
These achievements matter and must never be dismissed or diminished.
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Japan · Day 1Takaichi SanaeThe distribution of goods is stagnating.
People across the world are suffering from high cost of living.
Progress towards development goals is not on track, and human rights issues are rising in various places around the world.
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Chile · Day 1José Antonio KastThe United Nations has a role to play and it must do so with the character and the dynamism that it has not yet shown.
Delegates, here is the most uncomfortable thing I came to say, the hardest pill to swallow in my speech.
This organization has not been commensurate with the challenges of our times.
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Secretary-General of the United Nations · Day 1António GuterresOver the last decade, we achieved an enormous milestone.
I am proud to report to you today that the United Nations achieved gender parity for the first time in history across all senior leadership, all headquarters, and all professional staff.
It happened because we removed barriers, we challenged assumptions, and refused to accept that power must look as it always was.
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Türkiye · Day 1Recep Tayyip ErdoğanToday we may live in comfort, far away from conflict zones and from crisis areas.
But none of us knows what tomorrow will bring or what might happen to us.
It is for this reason that I think that this year's General Assembly theme is particularly timely and pertinent because it focuses on restoring trust in the international system.
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Luxembourg · Day 1Guillaume of Luxembourg81 years later, that promise is under considerable pressure.
But it has not failed.
Multilateralism may be imperfect, but disenchantment should lead us to reform, not to dismissal.
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Suriname · Day 1Jennifer Geerlings-SimonsWe also remember with warmth your visit to Suriname, expressing the importance of the United Nations engagement with our country and the Caribbean region.
We wish you well in the part before you.
Mister President, standing before this assembly, I am reminded that while some efforts have been made from this rostrum over the past year, these have not yet matched the scale of the challenges confronting our world.
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Switzerland · Day 1Guy ParmelinWe need institutions capable of dealing with issues that transcend national borders.
We need multilateralism.
But multilateralism will only retain its credibility if it is also able to evolve.
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Seychelles · Day 1Mathew Antonio Patrick HerminieMr. Secretary General, as this is the final General Assembly you will address in your current capacity, Seychelles extends its profound gratitude for your decade of dedicated stewardship.
You have consistently championed a United Nations that is more effective, responsive, and grounded in the needs of the people we serve.
Mr. President, the theme of this session strikes at the core of our contemporary global crisis.
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Viet Nam · Day 1To LamIt is therefore my belief that the theme of this session, restoring trust, managing transformation, a UN that delivers for all, aptly reflects the urgent demands of the time.
Distinguished guests, From the losses of the Second World War, humanity created the UN with the aspiration to prevent wars, safeguard peace, promote cooperation and place relations among nations on the foundation of common principles.
Over the past eight decades, despite its limitations, the UN has helped sustain dialogue, advance decolonization, uphold the right of peoples to self-determination and support development.
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Belgium · Day 1Maxime PrévotIt also requires institutions capable of functioning.
Defending the United Nations doesn't mean pretending that everything within it works well.
The UN80 process is necessary.
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Lithuania · Day 1Gitanas NausėdaLadies and gentlemen, the credibility of the United Nations depends on its ability to respond firmly to aggression, unlawful conquest, forced deportations, and crimes against humanity.
and also to coordinate the global response to the growth of AI.
I am grateful to the Secretary-General, His Excellency Antonio Guterres, for his long-lasting service and his focus on reforming the United Nations into a more effective, modern, and responsive organization.
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Finland · Day 1Alexander StubbWe need a dignified foreign policy, and that starts here in the United Nations.
Now, ladies and gentlemen, let me conclude with the following remarks.
I would like to thank Secretary-General Guterres for his service and his dedication to reforming and rationalizing the UN system.
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Mongolia · Day 1Khurelsukh UkhnaaMangoe shares the view expressed by United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in his annual report on the work of the organization that, in a world marked by turbulence, division and uncertainty, the United Nations is more necessary than ever.
Hence, Mongolia underscores the tangible progress made under Secretary-General's UN80 initiative to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the United Nations in response to the challenges of our time and reaffirms its active support for this initiative.
The effectiveness of the United Nations, the decisiveness of its actions, and the ability of nations to unite their efforts will ultimately depend upon us, the Member States.
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Republic of Korea · Day 1Lee Jae MyungWe must reduce duplication across organizations and programs, accelerate decision-making, and direct limited resources where they are needed most.
In this spirit, the Republic of Korea supports the UN80 initiative, which will improve efficiency, prioritize field operations, and deliver greater results.
We also support the reform of the UN Security Council so that it operates in a more effective, democratic, and accountable manner.
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Sierra Leone · Day 1Julius Maada BioAccessible and predictable climate finance, support for adaptation, and effective arrangement for loss and damage are obligations of justice.
They are also investment in global stability Fairness in transformation depends on the institutions that govern it.
Sierra Leone, therefore, supports the UNH initiative and wider reforms that make this organization more effective, accountable, and responsive.
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Naoero · Day 1David Ranibok AdeangMy delegation assures you of our full support, and we thank your predecessor for the stewardship of the 80th session.
We also pay tribute to Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, This is the last General Debate of his tenure, and my country records its gratitude for a decade in which the smaller states were heard more often than before.
I have traveled far to speak on matters that may seem distinct, but are united by a single fundamental principle: the right of every people to be treated as an equal and to speak for itself.
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United Republic of Tanzania · Day 1Deogratius NdejembiThese challenges should remind us of a need for a stronger and much more coordinated United Nations.
Therefore, the theme of this session, that is, restoring trust, Managing transformation, a United Nation that delivers for all, is timely for it requires us to revert to the founding principles of maintaining peace and restoring trust.
Managing transformation requires reforming the UN to meet the realities of our time.
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Trinidad and Tobago · Day 1Kamla Persad-BissessarMr. President, the Secretary-General's UN80 initiative to make the organisation more efficient and better equipped for the future is necessary and timely.
Indeed, today, as we listened to President Trump, the Honourable President shared with us some of the initiatives for reform that was taking place and will take place here at the UN.
Reform should reduce duplication, strengthen accountability, retire mandates that no longer serve their purpose, and direct scarce resources towards measurable results.
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United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland · Day 1Andy BurnhamThat is the level of ambition that we need now to renew the UN for our times, to tackle challenges like improving global health and preventing future pandemics, to end the wars that are causing so much suffering and instability, including the terrible conflict in Sudan, and to tackle climate change.
The climate crisis is now a national security threat for countries around the world, as this summer of extreme heat, wildfires, and floods has proved beyond doubt.
Britain will continue to lead with others to fight this threat, to protect our children and grandchildren, to protect the natural world, and also to seize the benefits for jobs, growth, and reindustrialization that the clean energy transition can bring.
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Croatia · Day 1Andrej PlenkovićOur responsibility is to govern them so that change expands human freedom and security instead of weakening them.
The United Nations must begin with its own transformation.
Croatia supports a UN that is more effective, accountable and financially sustainable, and stronger across all three pillars: peace and security, sustainable development and, of course, human rights.
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