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Editorial | Trump’s speech raises questions about the future of the UN
There is an urgent need to restore the credibility of the organisation through reform, particularly of the Security Council
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US global leadership was instrumental in the founding of the United Nations to prevent wars. Now US leadership under President Donald Trump raises questions about the UN’s future. The world organisation marks its 80th anniversary this year. Trump’s address to its 80th annual general assembly was therefore keenly anticipated, no matter the expectations of some leaders. Sadly, they were not proven wrong.
The speech confirms that on several big issues, the United States under Trump is heading in a different direction from most countries. Even Washington’s key Western allies are switching to recognising a Palestinian state.
Trump lashed out at the UN and Europe over immigration and renewable energy, dismissing climate change as a hoax and a “con job” – even as Super Typhoon Ragasa battered the Philippines, Taiwan, Hong Kong and the mainland, adding to evidence that global warming aggravates natural disasters. Trump is demanding that Europe give up on green energy and revert to fossil fuels.
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Citing immigration as an example, Trump said the UN was not only failing to solve the problems it should, but often “creating new problems for us to solve”. He added: “The UN is supposed to stop invasions, not create them and not finance them.”
Climate change is one of the big issues in which the UN has a role to play. So Trump’s attempt to sideline it even there is very worrying. This also suggests he sees very little value in the UN. If this is a true reflection of the attitude of the US, the UN’s joint founder and main backer, it raises questions about the organisation’s future and the kind of reforms needed to secure it.
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This is a wake-up call. The UN, after all, is the only global forum we have for resolving conflict and safeguarding peace. And Trump is not the first to query its effectiveness. There is a need to restore its credibility through reforms, including making the Security Council more representative of the wider membership.
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