UN: Lula criticizes heads of state and government for inability to negotiate

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said on Tuesday (24 September) that world leaders are going in circles and achieving inefficient results in their efforts to solve the planet’s problems. Opening the debate of world leaders at the 79th United Nations (UN) General Assembly in New York, he mentioned the Pact for the futurea document adopted by countries to strengthen global cooperation.

“The difficult adoption of the agreement shows how our collective capacity for negotiation and dialogue is weakened. Its limited scope is also an expression of the paradox of our time: we are going in circles between possible compromises that lead to inadequate results,” he argued.

“Even after the COVID-19 tragedy, we have not managed to agree on a pandemic treaty at the World Health Organization. We must go much further and equip the UN with the necessary tools to address the dizzying changes in the international landscape,” the President added.

In his view, the crisis of global governance requires structural changes, and this task is the responsibility of the General Assembly, “the greatest expression of multilateralism.” Shortly before its 80th anniversary, the United Nations Charter has never been subjected to comprehensive reform, said the Latin American head of state. When the UN was founded, it had 51 countries; today there are 193.

“The current version of the Charter fails to address some of the most pressing challenges facing humanity,” he said, referring to the various armed conflicts in the world. “This creates the potential for general confrontation.”

According to the President, at the time of the UN’s creation, several countries, especially on the African continent, were under colonial rule and “had no influence on its objectives and functioning”. In addition, he noted, there is no gender balance in the highest offices and the post of Secretary-General has never been held by a woman.

“We are approaching the end of the first quarter of the 21st century and the United Nations is increasingly weakened and paralyzed. One-off adjustments are not enough; we must consider a comprehensive revision of the Charter,” he said.

Brazil proposes transforming the Economic and Social Council into the main forum for sustainable development and the fight against climate change, which can also inspire financial institutions. It also proposes revitalizing the role of the General Assembly, including in matters of international peace and security. It proposes strengthening the Peacebuilding Commission. It also proposes reforming the Security Council, focusing on its composition, working methods and veto power, in order to make it more effective and more in line with current realities.

President Lula believes that reform of the UN Security Council is urgently needed and that emerging countries should be adequately represented. In its current form, this council, which has the power to make major decisions on international conflicts, has only the US, Russia, China, France and the UK as permanent members. According to the rules, a resolution must be supported by nine of the 15 members in total in order to be adopted, and none of the permanent members can block the text.

“The exclusion of Latin America and Africa from permanent seats on the Security Council is an unacceptable echo of the domination practices of the colonial past,” said the Brazilian president.

“I have no illusions about the complexity of such a reform, which will clash with crystallized interests in maintaining the status quo. It will require enormous negotiating efforts, but that is our responsibility. We cannot wait for another world tragedy – like World War II – before building a new world order on the ruins. The will of the majority can convince those who cling to the crude expressions of the mechanisms of power,” he added.

President Lula’s speech to the United Nations reflects Brazil’s priority themes at the G20 summit: the fight against inequality and hunger, climate change and the reform of global governance institutions. Until November this year, the country will hold the presidency of the bloc, which brings together 19 countries and two regional entities – the European Union and the African Union.

General debate

The UN General Assembly is one of the main organs of the UN and brings together the 193 states that are part of the organization. This year, the theme of the Assembly’s general debate is “Leaving no one behind: Working together to advance peace, sustainable development and human dignity for present and future generations.” At this working session, heads of state and government of member states are invited to speak and describe their visions and concerns regarding the multilateral system.

Commitments

The President landed in New York on Saturday (21). On Sunday (22) he gave a speech at the Summit for the Future, an event taking place parallel to the UN General Assembly. Yesterday (23) he took part in bilateral meetings with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Haitian Prime Minister Garry Conille.

In addition, the Brazilian president is scheduled to coordinate the event “In Defense of Democracy, Fighting Extremism” on Tuesday together with Spanish President Pedro Sanchez. The initiative aims to strengthen institutions in the fight against inequality, disinformation and radicalism.