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The UN at 80: Can multilateralism survive AI, war, and fragmentation?
A world beset by war, widening inequality, climate stress, and runaway AI demands institutions that can still deliver. In a Global Stage conversation recorded live on the sidelines of the 80th United Nations General Assembly, moderated by journalist Julia Chatterley, our expert panel probes whether multilateralism can adapt amid crisis and competition.
The panelists test the resilience of global cooperation as conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza, and Sudan strain resources and trust. Ian Bremmer, president and founder of Eurasia Group, argues that despite volatility—especially around U.S. policy—existing institutions remain indispensable, even as power dynamics shift. Rebeca Grynspan, secretary‑general of UNCTAD and former vice president of Costa Rica, warns that tariff escalations and budget cuts risk devastating the most vulnerable economies and humanitarian efforts, urging protection for least‑developed countries and smarter, more efficient use of limited funds. Brad Smith, vice chair and president of Microsoft, highlights how technology and “data center diplomacy” can boost efficiency and service delivery, while Ambassador Philip Thigo, Kenya’s special envoy on technology, underscores the Global South’s growing role in shaping consensus and the need for multistakeholder governance that brings private sector, civil society, and academia to the table.
The discussion zeroes in on AI’s uneven diffusion—and what it will take to close the gap in electricity access, connectivity, and digital skills so adoption translates into productivity and inclusive growth. S. Krishnan, secretary at India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), positions India as a bridge between North and South, leveraging low‑cost digital public infrastructure and frugal innovation to help countries leapfrog in targeted areas. Smith urges nations to focus not on building chips but on deploying AI to amplify existing strengths and talent, while Bremmer notes that pragmatic engagement with both US and Chinese tech ecosystems can help countries avoid dependency. The optimistic takeaway: reform is necessary, cooperation is rising, and leaders have real agency to steer technology toward the common good.
This conversation is presented by GZERO in partnership with Microsoft, as part of the Global Stage series, which convenes global leaders for critical conversations on the geopolitical and technological trends shaping our world.
US President Donald Trump delivers his speech to the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York, United States, Tuesday, September 23, 2025.
Trump at the UN: Teleprompter trouble and tough talk
“Whoever’s in charge of the teleprompter is in trouble,” Donald Trump quipped from the lectern at the United Nations General Assembly, drawing a chuckle as the screen in front of him blinked blankly. The levity didn’t last. For the next hour, Trump delivered a speech that blended campaign-style hyperbole about his own achievements, sharp criticism of the UN, and stark warnings to fellow leaders that “your countries are going to hell.”
Immigration dominated the opening moments. Trump praised El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele for keeping US deportees in “terrorist prisons” and warned that nations failing to control their borders risk being “ruined” by uncontrolled migration. He also accused the UN of incentivizing and funding illegal immigration worldwide.
Turning to broader global issues, Trump claimed credit for ending or defusing seven conflicts—from the war between Israel and Iran, to fighting in Armenia and Azerbaijan—arguing that U.S. leadership resolves disputes more effectively than multilateral institutions. “Sadly, in all cases, the United Nations did not even try to help,” he said, questioning the body’s ability to act decisively on global crises. On Gaza, he demanded the release of hostages and denounced countries recognizing Palestinian statehood as “rewarding Hamas.” On Ukraine, he criticized Europe for continuing to buy Russian oil while calling for an end to the war. He highlighted US attacks on drug-trafficking boats from Venezuela and threatened to “blow them out of existence” if they attempted to move narcotics into the US.
The day had begun with Secretary General António Guterres, who opened the session by cautioning that the UN’s founding principles are “under siege.” Trump’s appearance only underscored that warning as the leader of the world’s most powerful nation lambasted the organization. Guterres and Trump are set to meet face to face later this week.
UN's Rebeca Grynspan on the world’s debt crisis: Can it be solved?
Today, around 3.3 billion people live in countries spending more on debt than on essential services like education and healthcare, and governments worldwide are struggling to pay these debts. Rebeca Grynspan, secretary-general of the UN Conference on Trade and Development, warns of looming trade wars and faltering financial systems designed to reduce global poverty and promote development. What will it take to get countries back on track? Grynspan shares insights on this, highlighting the roles of the UN General Assembly and the International Monetary Fund in a Global Stage interview with GZERO’s Tony Maciulis on the sidelines of the 7th annual Paris Peace Forum.
Watch out for more coverage of the Paris Peace Forum from GZERO this week.
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A representation of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as Pro-Palestinian protesters rally against Israel's strikes in Gaza and Lebanon during demonstrations in New York City, on Sept. 26, 2024.
Palestine and Lebanon’s leaders address UNGA ahead of Netanyahu’s arrival
Abbas then laid out a 12-point policy for what is needed “immediately and on day one after the war ends.” The plan included a permanent cease-fire in Gaza, an end to the “military aggression by settlers in the West Bank and East Jerusalem,” humanitarian aid, and the return of displaced peoples. He called for Palestine to be given full membership to the UN, and disparaged the US for being “the only member in the Security Council that voted against granting the state of Palestine full membership.”
Later that evening, Lebanon’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Abdallah Bouhabib called on Israel to adopt an immediate cease-fire and halt its strikes within Lebanese borders, noting that the cause of the current conflict was Israel's ongoing occupation. "The shortest path for the return [of displaced Israelis in the North]," he said, "is a comprehensive, immediate cease-fire as stipulated in the US-Franco declaration yesterday ... as part of a comprehensive framework accompanied by clear international guarantees, transparency, and a definitive end to land, sea, and air incursions and breaches of Lebanese sovereignty."
Both speeches came as the US, France, and several Arab nations tried to use the tail end of the UN General Assembly to broker a temporary Israel to agree to a cease-fire with Lebanon.
Meanwhile, protesters began marching outside the UN security perimeter on Thursday in anticipation of Friday's appearance at UNGA by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has instructed his military to keep fighting “with full force” in Lebanon. Netanyahu said on Thursday that "we will not stop until we achieve our goals, first and foremost returning the residents of the north safely to their homes."
Global researchers sign new pact to make AI a “global public good”
The declaration comes one week after the UN Secretary-General's High-Level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence (HLAB-AI) released its final report detailing seven recommendations for the UN to promote responsible and safe AI governance.
The Manhattan Declaration, which shares some signatories with the HLAB-AI group – including Google’s James Manyika, former Spanish government official Carme Artigas, and the Institute for Advanced Study’s Alondra Nelson – is a 10-point decree seeking to shape the contours of future AI development. It asks researchers to promote scientific cooperation among diverse and inclusive perspectives, conduct transparent research and risk assessment into AI models, and commit to responsible development and use, among other priorities. Nelson co-sponsored the declaration alongside University of Montreal professor Yoshua Bengio, and other signatories include officials from Alibaba, IBM, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and the Center for AI Safety.
This is meant to foster AI as a “global public good,” as the signatories put it.
“We reaffirm our commitment to developing AI systems that are beneficial to humanity and acknowledge their pivotal role in attaining the global Sustainable Development Goals, such as improved health and education,” they wrote. “We emphasize that AI systems’ whole life cycle, including design, development, and deployment, must be aligned with core principles, safeguarding human rights, privacy, fairness, and dignity for all.”
That’s the crux of the declaration: Artificial intelligence isn’t just something to be controlled, but a technology that can – if harnessed in a way that respects human rights and privacy — help society solve its biggest problems. During a recent panel conversation led by Eurasia Group and GZERO Media founder and president Ian Bremmer (also a member of the HLAB-AI group), Google’s Manyika cited International Telecommunication Union research that found most of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals could be achieved with help from AI.
While other AI treaties, agreements, and declarations – such as the UK’s Bletchley Declaration signed last year – include a combination of governments, tech companies, and academics, the Manhattan Declaration focuses on those actually researching artificial intelligence. “As AI scientists and technology-policy researchers, we advocate for a truly inclusive,
global approach to understanding AI’s capabilities, opportunities, and risks,” the letter concludes. “This is essential for shaping effective global governance of AI technologies. Together, we can ensure that the development of advanced AI systems benefits all of humanity.”
UN flags and logo.
Scandals and hope at the UN: Is it worth it?
What good is the United Nations in 2024?
With wars raging, AI disrupting, inequality growing, and climate change accelerating, UN Secretary-General António Guterres says that “a powder keg risks engulfing the world.”
That’s one reason why the GZERO team is paying close attention to a giant gabfest, where leaders like President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, policymakers, diplomats, and influencers from 193 countries have gathered this week to try to solve some of the world’s most intractable problems.
It’s why you saw Ian Bremmer’s exclusive interview with Guterres on our PBS TV program GZERO World or, as we reported today in our morning newsletter, we have Iran’s Vice President for Strategic Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif on the show denying that Iran was involved in the assassination attempts on former President Donald Trump, while admitting that US election hacking came from someone in his country. Watch the clip here and tune in next week for the full interview on GZERO World with Ian Bremmer.
It’s also why we hosted and broadcast a series of key livestreams with world leaders covering everything from governing AI to the conflicts in Europe, Lebanon, Gaza, and Ukraine.
I have been incredibly proud of the work the team has done sorting through the global noise to get at the clear political signals while highlighting the issues in an insightful, nonpartisan way.
But the question remains: Why bother paying attention to the UN?
It’s easy to be cynical about the UN. As Brett Stephens once described it, “The U.N. is a never-ending scandal disguised as an everlasting hope. The hope is that dialogue can overcome distrust, and collective security can be made to work in the interests of humanity. Reality says otherwise.”
Scandals, failures, hypocrisies, and disappointments fly around the UN as prominently as the flags around its New York City headquarters, and Stephens waved many of them, from the failure to stop the genocide in Rwanda and the massacre in Srebrenica, to corruption in the oil-for-food program in Iraq. That was back in 2018.
Today there are even more, from the outrage surrounding allegations that some UNRWA workers worked with Hamas during the Oct. 7 massacres, to the obstructive dysfunctions of the five permanent members that have veto powers, which has proven to be a tragic obstacle to real global action in key conflicts, like Sudan. It’s hard to take the UN seriously when Iran gets a turn chairing its Human Rights Council Social Forum.
Even reading through the main agenda of the 79th General Assembly session, it’s understandable why some critics experience high-speed eye-rolling that rivals the backspin on a Roger Federer backhand. For example, one goal says: “Achieving global nuclear disarmament is the highest disarmament priority of the United Nations.” How’s that going? Just yesterday, Russian leader Vladimir Putin announced that he was alerting his nuclear doctrine to lower the threshold needed to justify the use of nuclear weapons, a major escalation in the war in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, less than 20% of the famed 17 Sustainable Development Goals are on track to be completed by 2030.
“The Secretariat Building in New York has 38 stories. If you lost 10 stories today it wouldn’t make a bit of difference,” quipped John Bolton, the US ambassador to the UN under former President George W. Bush. Many critics today still think he’s right.
But is he?
Only pointing out the UN’s failures to solve complex global problems is like describing Ted Williams as a guy who failed to get a hit 60% of the time, instead of noting that a baseball player hitting .400 is one of the greatest feats in sports. It’s like dismissing venture capital investors as losers because at least 80% of their investments go bust, instead of focusing on the ones that succeed and more than make up for the other losses. In very hard challenges, a low success rate can still be a major victory.
Back in 1973, Horst Rittel and Melvin Webber coined the term “wicked problem” to describe political, environmental, or security challenges that are uniquely difficult to solve and may have no single right answer. That’s where the UN is needed most, to pull in global voices that often disagree or are at war with each other and make a genuine attempt to solve wicked problems. That takes time.
The fact is, there are many UN successes, notably the World Food Programme, which helps over 80 million people, delivering food, medicines, and vaccines to countries in crisis. There are peace treaties and accords establishing norms and conventions, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, its most famous document.
This past week, there was a major success in global governance on AI with the Global Digital Compact, which was signed by most major countries except Russia. They agreed to everything from global standards on accessibility, use, and design, to the establishment of an international scientific panel, which will — like the IPCC does for climate — create a measuring tool and a road map for how AI governance might unfold. There is literally no other place in the world where this could happen.
Is there a need for UN reform? Of course. That is why, for example, there is a strong push to create two permanent seats for Africa on the Security Council. In this video that I urge you to check out, Ian Bremmer argues that despite the challenges facing the world’s largest multilateral organization, the UN is more relevant than ever.
But the institution is only as good as the members make it through their financial contributions, attendance, and support. One of the key challenges is making all the work that is happening — and there is a lot — understandable and relevant to the wider public in order to overcome the massive trust deficit the UN faces.
Reestablishing trust takes radical transparency, and that’s why GZERO has made such an effort to pull back the curtain and give people a chance to see, hear, and debate the real policies and ideas that are being pitched. You should be able to judge for yourself if the UN is useful or not. We hope our coverage gives you the tools to do just that.
President Joe Biden addresses the United Nations Headquarters during the 79th General Assembly, in New York, on Sept. 24, 2024.
Biden sings his swan song at UNGA, urges support for Ukraine
UNITED NATIONS – “There are more important things than staying in power,” President Joe Biden reminded world leaders on Tuesday in the United Nations General Assembly hall. During his final address to the UN as US president, Biden used his decision not to run for a second term to frame what he hopes will become his legacy on the global stage: a politician who fought for democracy to defeat autocracy.
He focused heavily on his administration’s support of Ukraine after Russia’s invasion, saying that the US and its allies had “ensured the survival of Ukraine as a free nation.” But he also acknowledged that Washington's leadership on Ukraine may end if Donald Trump is elected in November. In perhaps one of his last opportunities to gather global support, he asked the crowd, “Will we walk away and let a nation be destroyed?”
Later on Tuesday, the UN Security Council discussed the situation in Ukraine ahead of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s address to UNGA on Wednesday. In remarks before the Security Council, Zelensky excoriated Russia over its invasion of Ukraine and the tactics used throughout the war.
"Putin has broken so many international norms and rules that he won't stop on his own, Russia can only be forced into peace, and that is exactly what's needed, forcing Russia into peace, as the sole aggressor in this war, the sole violator of the UN Charter," Zelensky said.
The Ukrainian leader also criticized Iran and North Korea, referring to them as “de facto accomplices” in Russia’s “criminal war.” Western intelligence suggests that Tehran and Pyongyang have provided arms to Moscow.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who was also at the Security Council meeting, echoed Zelensky’s criticism. "Support from Tehran and Pyongyang is helping Putin inflict carnage, suffering, and ruin on innocent Ukrainian men, women, children,” Blinken said.
On Thursday, Biden will meet with Zelensky to discuss Ukraine using American long-range missiles to strike deep into Russian territory — a step Biden has resisted, fearing it could cross a red line for Moscow and put the US in direct conflict with nuclear-armed Russia.
Meanwhile, as tensions and airstrikes between Israel and Hezbollah threaten a wider escalation in the Middle East, Biden said that “a full-scale war is not in anyone’s interests” and that “a diplomatic solution is still possible.” But he made no hint that the US is considering lessening its support for Israel, reaffirming his belief that after an atrocity like Oct. 7, “any country would have a right and responsibility to ensure that an act like that never happens again.”
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky
Zelensky visits the US to present his “victory plan”
Zelensky arrives at the height of a US election season, but he knows and will make clear in meetings with US officials that Ukraine faces a tough winter. A lack of effective air defenses has allowed Russia to strike power plants and other energy infrastructure targets in recent months, leaving Ukraine’s war-weary people facing daily power outages as the colder months loom. President Biden knows Zelensky needs something he can present to his people as a win for the war effort. Whether Congress will pay for whatever Biden promises is a separate political problem.