Ban kicks off General Assembly with Syria warning
U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon opened today’s U.N. General Assembly debate by urging the Arab Spring’s new leaders — from Egypt to Libya — to "make decisive breaks with the past" and appealing to the U.N. membership to prevent Syria’s worsening civil war from engulfing the region in sectarian strife. "We need to look no ...
U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon opened today's U.N. General Assembly debate by urging the Arab Spring's new leaders -- from Egypt to Libya -- to "make decisive breaks with the past" and appealing to the U.N. membership to prevent Syria's worsening civil war from engulfing the region in sectarian strife.
U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon opened today’s U.N. General Assembly debate by urging the Arab Spring’s new leaders — from Egypt to Libya — to "make decisive breaks with the past" and appealing to the U.N. membership to prevent Syria’s worsening civil war from engulfing the region in sectarian strife.
"We need to look no further than this room to see expression of the thirst for progress," Ban said. "A large number of you are here for the first time — new leaders, installed by new voices, and expected to make decisive breaks with the past. Your people want to see results in real time; now, not the distant future."
Ban appealed to the gathering to "put an end to impunity for international crimes in Syria and elsewhere" and warned that conditions in Syria were worsening each day, saying that steps need to be taken to "stop the violence and flows of arms to both sides" in order to "set in motion a Syrian led transition as soon as possible."
"The crisis is no longer limited to Syria; it is a regional calamity with global ramifications," he said. "It is the duty of our generation to put an end to impunity for international crimes, in Syria and elsewhere."
Ban also touched on a set of other global concerns, including poverty, climate change, and the scarcity of essential resources to sustain a growing world population that surpassed 7 billion people, saying the United Nations and world leaders need "to bolster safety nets."
"Action on climate change remains a major piece of unfinished business," he said. "Our use of resources threatens the planet’s limits. Ecosystems are reaching the breaking point. The world’s best science tells us we must change course before it is too late."
The U.N. chief also touched on a series of other security challenges, expressing concern about ongoing violence in Afghanistan and the stalled Middle East peace process. "After decades of harsh occupation and humiliating restriction in almost every aspect of their lives, the Palestinians must be able to realize their right to a viable state of their own," he said, while also making clear that "Israel must be able to live in peace and security from threats and rockets.
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Colum Lynch was a staff writer at Foreign Policy between 2010 and 2022. Twitter: @columlynch
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