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UNITED NATIONS , Sep 20 (AP) \u2014 In an alarming assessment, the head of the United Nations warned world leaders Tuesday that nations are \u201cgridlocked in colossal global dysfunction\u201d and aren\u2019t ready or willing to tackle the challenges that threaten humanity\u2019s future \u2014 and the planet\u2019s. \u201cOur world is in peril \u2014 and paralyzed,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Speaking at the opening of the General Assembly\u2019s annual high-level meeting, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres made sure to emphasize that hope remained. But his remarks reflected a tense and worried world. He cited the war in Ukraine and multiplying conflicts around the world, the climate emergency, the dire financial situation of developing countries and setbacks in U.N. goals for 2030 including an end to extreme poverty and quality education for all children.<\/p>\n
He also warned of what he called \u201ca forest of red flags\u201d around new technologies despite promising advances to heal diseases and connect people. Guterres said social media platforms are based on a model \u201cthat monetizes outrage, anger and negativity.\u201d Artificial intelligence he said, \u201cis compromising the integrity of information systems, the media, and indeed democracy itself.\u201d<\/p>\n
The world lacks even the beginning of \u201ca global architecture\u201d to deal with the ripples caused by these new technologies because of \u201cgeopolitical tensions,\u201d Guterres said.<\/p>\n
His opening remarks came as leaders from around the planet reconvened at U.N. headquarters in New York after three years of pandemic interruptions, including an entirely virtual meeting in 2020 and a hybrid one last year. This week, the halls of the United Nations are filled once more with delegates reflecting the world\u2019s cultures. Many faces were visible, though all delegates are required to wear masks except when speaking to ward off the coronavirus.<\/p>\n
Guterres made sure to start out by sounding a note of hope. He showed a video of the first U.N.-chartered ship carrying grain from Ukraine \u2014 part of the deal between Ukraine and Russia that the United Nations and Turkey helped broker \u2014 to the Horn of Africa, where millions of people are on the edge of famine It is, he said, an example of promise and hope \u201cin a world teeming with turmoil.\u201d<\/p>\n
He stressed that cooperation and dialogue are the only path forward \u2014 two fundamental U.N. principles since its founding after World War II. And he warned that \u201cno power or group alone can call the shots.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s work as one, as a coalition of the world, as united nations,\u201d he urged leaders gathered in the vast General Assembly hall.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s rarely that easy. Geopolitical divisions are undermining the work of the U.N. Security Council, international law, people\u2019s trust in democratic institutions and most forms of international cooperation, Guterres said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe divergence between developed and developing countries, between North and South, between the privileged and the rest, is becoming more dangerous by the day,\u201d the secretary-general said. \u201cIt is at the root of the geopolitical tensions and lack of trust that poison every area of global cooperation, from vaccines to sanctions to trade.<\/p>\n
Before the global meeting was gaveled open, leaders and ministers wearing masks to avoid a COVID-19 super-spreader event wandered the assembly hall, chatting individually and in groups. It was a sign that that despite the fragmented state of the planet, the United Nations remains the key gathering place for presidents, prime ministers, monarchs and ministers.<\/p>\n
Nearly 150 heads of state and government are on the latest speakers\u2019 list, a high number reflecting that the United Nations remains the only place not just to deliver their views but to meet privately to discuss the challenges on the global agenda — and hopefully make some progress.<\/p>\n
The 77th General Assembly meeting of world leaders convenes under the shadow of Europe\u2019s first major war since World War II \u2014 the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, which has unleashed a global food crisis and opened fissures among major powers in a way not seen since the Cold War.<\/p>\n
At the top of that agenda for many: Russia\u2019s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, which not only threatens the sovereignty of its smaller neighbor but has raised fears of a nuclear catastrophe at Europe\u2019s largest nuclear plant in the country\u2019s now Russia-occupied southeast.<\/p>\n
Leaders in many countries are trying to prevent a wider war and restore peace in Europe. Diplomats, though, aren\u2019t expecting any breakthroughs this week.<\/p>\n
The loss of important grain and fertilizer exports from Ukraine and Russia has triggered a food crisis, especially in developing countries, and inflation and a rising cost of living in many others. Those issues are high on the agenda.<\/p>\n
At a meeting Monday to promote U.N. goals for 2030 \u2014 including ending extreme poverty, ensuring quality education for all children and achieving gender equality \u2014 Guterres said the world\u2019s many pressing perils make it \u201ctempting to put our long-term development priorities to one side.\u201d<\/p>\n
But the U.N. chief said some things can\u2019t wait \u2014 among them education, dignified jobs, full equality for women and girls, comprehensive health care and action to tackle the climate crisis. He called for public and private finance and investment, and above all for peace.<\/p>\n
The death of Britain\u2019s Queen Elizabeth II and her funeral in London on Monday, which many world leaders attended, have created last-minute headaches for the high-level meeting. Diplomats and U.N. staff have scrambled to deal with changes in travel plans, the timing of events and the logistically intricate speaking schedule for world leaders.<\/p>\n
The global gathering, known as the General Debate, was entirely virtual in 2020 because of the pandemic, and hybrid in 2021. This year, the 193-member General Assembly returns to only in-person speeches, with a single exception \u2014 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.<\/p>\n
Over objections from Russia and a few allies, the assembly voted last Friday to allow the Ukrainian leader to prerecord his speech because of reasons beyond his control \u2014 the \u201congoing foreign invasion\u201d and military hostilities that require him to carry out his \u201cnational defense and security duties.\u201d<\/p>\n
The U.S. president, representing the host country for the United Nations, is traditionally the second speaker. But Joe Biden is attending the queen\u2019s funeral, and his speech has been pushed to Wednesday morning.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
UNITED NATIONS , Sep 20 (AP) \u2014 In an alarming assessment, the head of the United Nations warned world leaders Tuesday that nations are \u201cgridlocked in colossal global dysfunction\u201d and aren\u2019t ready or willing to tackle the challenges that threaten humanity\u2019s future \u2014 and the planet\u2019s. \u201cOur world is in peril \u2014 and paralyzed,\u201d he […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-200931","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-world"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/arunachaltimes.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/200931","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/arunachaltimes.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/arunachaltimes.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arunachaltimes.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arunachaltimes.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=200931"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/arunachaltimes.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/200931\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/arunachaltimes.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=200931"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arunachaltimes.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=200931"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arunachaltimes.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=200931"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}