Guterres Warns Leaders at the U.N. of an Era of “Relentless Human Suffering”

In a context of mounting pressure against peace and progress, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres on Tuesday challenged world leaders to choose a future where the rule of law prevails over brute force, and where nations unite instead of competing for self-interest.

Guterres noted that the U.N.’s founders faced the same questions 80 years ago, but told today’s leaders at the opening of the General Assembly’s annual meeting that the choice between peace or war, law or anarchy, cooperation or conflict is “more urgent, more intertwined, more relentless.”

“We have entered an era of reckless upheaval and relentless human suffering,” he said in his annual state-of-the-world address. “The pillars of peace and progress are crumbling under the weight of impunity, inequality, and indifference.”

Yet despite the internal and external challenges facing the United Nations, both Guterres and General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock urged members not to give up. “If we stop doing what is right, evil will prevail,” Baerbock said in her opening remarks.

Guterres pointed out that the world is becoming increasingly multipolar—an acknowledgment of emerging powers like China and India, but also a rebuke to the U.S. insistence on superpower status. He stressed that a world of many powers can be more diverse and dynamic, but without international cooperation and effective global institutions, it risks descending into “chaos.”

U.S. President Donald Trump, in a nearly hour-long speech, insisted that his nation has the strongest borders, military, and alliances, as well as “the strongest spirit of any nation on the face of the earth.”

“This is, in fact, America’s golden age,” he declared.

He further argued that the United Nations had done little to help resolve or ease conflicts—one reason, he said, why many believe he deserves the Nobel Peace Prize.

“All they seem to do is write a very strong letter,” he said, portraying the U.N. as ineffective, from its policies down to its escalators. One of them stopped unexpectedly as he and his wife Melania Trump were riding it to the General Assembly hall, and his teleprompter also malfunctioned.

A U.N. official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, said someone from the president’s delegation appeared to have inadvertently triggered the stop mechanism on the escalator. The official also noted that the White House was operating Trump’s teleprompter.

Trump reiterated that the U.N. has “tremendous, tremendous potential” but currently delivers only “empty words—and empty words don’t stop war.”

His tone shifted shortly afterward in a meeting with Guterres. “Our country supports the United Nations 100%,” Trump told the U.N. chief. “I may disagree sometimes, but I support it because the potential for peace in this institution is great.”

Guterres stressed that leaders’ first obligation is to choose peace. Without naming any country, he urged all nations to stop backing the warring parties in Sudan.

He also refrained from naming Israel but used his strongest language yet regarding its actions in Gaza, saying the scale of death and destruction is the worst in his nearly nine years as secretary-general, and that “nothing can justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people.”

Although Guterres has repeatedly said that only a tribunal can determine whether Israel has committed genocide in Gaza, he referred by name to the case South Africa brought before the U.N.’s highest court under the Genocide Convention, emphasizing its legally binding provisional measures—above all, to protect Palestinian civilians.

Since the International Court of Justice issued that ruling in January 2024, Guterres noted, killings have escalated and famine has been declared in parts of Gaza. He added that the court’s measures “must be implemented fully and immediately.”

The U.N. is also facing financial shortfalls, as the United States and several other nations have withheld funding or failed to pay their dues. Guterres said the aid cuts are “wreaking havoc,” calling them “a death sentence for many.”

Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Takes Center Stage
With growing international support for a Palestinian state, Israel’s devastating war in Gaza is expected to dominate the debate. But humanity’s many conflicts, rising poverty, and global warming will also remain at the forefront.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan opened his speech by lamenting the absence of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who was denied a U.S. visa.

He said he was standing at the assembly’s podium “for our Palestinian brothers and sisters whose voices are being silenced,” noting the growing recognition of Palestinian statehood. He thanked all the nations that had extended recognition and urged those that had not to do so “as soon as possible.”

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto also voiced strong support for Palestinians, warning the General Assembly that “human madness, fueled by fear, racism, hatred, oppression, and apartheid, threatens our shared future.”

“Every day we witness suffering, genocide, and blatant disregard for international law and human decency,” said the leader of the world’s most populous Muslim nation. “In the face of these challenges, we must not give up… We must draw closer, not drift further apart.”

The General Assembly week began Monday with events that included a conference on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Tuesday’s speakers also included Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva; Jordan’s King Abdullah II; French President Emmanuel Macron; South Korean President Lee Jae Myung; and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.

Lula—who spoke first, in keeping with a tradition dating back to when Brazil was the only country willing to open the session—voiced concern that the U.N.’s authority is waning.

“We are witnessing the consolidation of an international order blocked by repeated concessions to power games,” he said.

Geopolitical Fault Lines Grow More Complex
Although this year’s debate theme is “Better Together,” observers can expect a sobering overview of the ways the world is unraveling.

Gaza has already seized attention at the General Assembly. Monday’s conference, co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia, focused on rallying support for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Nearly every U.N. member state has signed up for a speaking slot during the marathon six-day session. The speaker list so far includes 89 heads of state, 43 heads of government, 19 vice presidents or deputy prime ministers, and 45 foreign ministers and other officials at ministerial level.