UN chief hails G77 and China as strong pillar of multilateralism

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday hailed the Group of 77 (G77) and China as a strong pillar of multilateralism.

Speaking at a handover ceremony of the chairmanship of the G77 and China, Guterres said the world began this year amid raging conflicts, widening inequalities, mounting debt burdens and an erosion of trust, and that is why multilateralism matters.

Guterres highlighted the importance of a renewed commitment to cooperation in a truly interconnected, multipolar world.

"The Group of 77 and China remains indispensable. At a moment when some question the value of cooperation, you have kept showing what cooperation can achieve," he said.

"Your unity is a force for fairness, a force for action, and a force for justice to reshape a system that too often still delivers developing countries a raw deal on finance, on climate, on technology, and on representation," said Guterres.

The UN chief called on the international community to commit to the Sustainable Development Goals, meet the climate emergency with the speed and scale it demands and with climate justice at its center, ensure the digital age becomes an engine of inclusion rather than an accelerator of inequality, and strengthen the United Nations.

In her speech, UN General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock said that there is "unprecedented strain on the multilateral system and our United Nations."

Baerbock said increasing political polarization and financial pressure impact not only discussions in New York but also on-the-ground operations across the globe, and therefore directly affect the people the United Nations is supposed to serve.

She stressed that all countries need to defend the UN Charter "now more than ever," and the G 77 and China "plays a crucial role in this regard."

Baerbock said the G77 and China comprises 134 countries from across Africa, Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean, representing over 80 percent of the world's population, including many least developed countries, small island developing states and emerging economic powerhouses.

At the ceremony, Uruguay took over the chairmanship of the G77 and China from Iraq for the year 2026.

UN chief hails G77 and China as strong pillar of multilateralism

The multilateral system is "under attack" amid global turmoil, President of the 80th UN General Assembly Annalena Baerbock warned in her remarks on Wednesday.

In her briefing on the priorities for the resumed 80th Session of the General Assembly, the UNGA president noted that the current multilateral system does not collapse all in a sudden, but "crumbles piece by piece" in divisions, compromises, and lack of political commitment.

The president called all the UN member states to defend the UN Charter and international law and promote cross-regional cooperation.

She also urged to push forward the work of the UNGA on certain critical issues with a strong majority, rather than an absolute consensus among all member states. Such act is not a failure of multilateralism, but "an affirmation of it," she said.

The foundational principles of the institution should not be eroded by appeasement, she said, calling the member states to show courage, leadership, and responsibility at the UN's "critical make-or-break moment."

"The UN needs you. Your support, your leadership, your principle, stand, your cross-regional cooperation, if we are to preserve and modernize this institution, if we are to make it, rather than break it," she said.

UNGA President warns global multilateral system "under attack"

UNGA President warns global multilateral system "under attack"