The mission of the United Nations is to maintain international peace and security. As we enter into a new decade in the midst of a global pandemic, this mission should be held with even higher regard than it has in the past. The UN We Want for the World We Deserve should comprise of states…
An Open Letter to Friends of the United Nations The only head of state so far committed to physically addressing the opening of the new UN General Assembly session is US President Trump. As the rules for COVID-19 allow only one of the six seats of each country’s delegation in the General Assembly Hall to…
This is the year of the UN’s 75th anniversary (“UN75”), basically 75 years since the end of World War II. It has been a turbulent 75 years. No new world war but a serious Cold War and many regional confrontations costing the lives of millions. When the UN was created in 1945 it had only…
This article was originally published on Passblue and can be accessed by clicking here. Covid-19 has pretty much shut down important negotiations at the United Nations, ranging from climate change to biodiversity. The General Assembly has not been able to meet as a group physically, but Security Council meetings have migrated online, with the Secretariat…
While the fight to cope with the lethal effects of COVID-19 on people and the economy is continuing around the world, another kind of fight is also raging, for geo-political predominance between the world’s foremost powers. In this fight of the titans, the ‘little guys’ are paying the price, be it the individuals that suffer…
The corona virus pandemic has sickened nearly 2 million people, killed over 100,000 and wrought economic ruin around the world within the space of a few months. It is a global calamity such as humankind has not witnessed since the Second World War. It is also an opportunity and an imperative for the United Nations…
Among a set of proposals that Katoikos’ parent institution, the Foundation for Global Governance and Sustainability (FOGGS) has put forward for a “modern, effective, ethical and people-centred United Nations”, is the introduction of a global holiday. Over the past several decades, 21 September has been celebrated by the United Nations as International Day of Peace….
An UN-proposed peace deal for Libya was signed late Saturday, 11 July 2015, in Morocco by some of the country’s political factions. The agreement was widely hailed as a move towards stability in the war-torn country. The deal lays the foundation for the establishment of a national unity government and the granting of legislative authority to the Tobruk-based assembly.
Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon delivered a formal address to the European Parliament on Wednesday, 27 May, as part of his goodwill tour marking the 70th anniversary of the United Nations. In his speech,he welcomed the Commission’s proposals as outlined in the Agenda on Migration, mentioning that the move to relocate 40,000 asylum seekers is a step in the right direction: “I encourage EU member states to show compassion as they consider this important proposal to share their resettlement responsibilities.” Before arriving to Brussels, the Secretary-General made a stop in Dublin where he stressed the need for renewed efforts in dealing with the migrant crisis
The EU central institutions seem to be stuck to what 19th Century Europe identified as “mission civilisatrice”, fuelled by an underlying sense of self-righteousness and superiority vis-à-vis others, while individual member states continue to pursue their narrow but concrete geopolitical and economic interests, which go in different directions. It should come as no surprise that EU members are steadily losing ground on the charts of state power and influence in the world, overtaken by more dynamic, emerging powers. Of course, with its ambition, innovation and flexibility the US remains steadily at the top, as would the EU as a whole, should it become really united.
