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Credit: United NationsNEW JERSEY, USA, Jun 06 (IPS) - On April 16, Seton Hall University's School of Diplomacy and International Relations hosted UN General Assembly President Philemon Yang as part of its World Leader Forum.
President Yang emphasized the enduring relevance of the three pillars of the United Nations—peace and security, human rights, and development—and the promising future that the students possessed. His confident remarks were a stark contrast to both the rhetoric surrounding the UN as well as the pressures put on it by the Trump administration.
Multilateralism was built on the rocky foundations of political unrest, which made the United Nations a lighthouse for the international community. However, the storm confronting the UN has only worsened in recent months.
President Yang’s conversation with Diplomacy students underscored that despite the challenges, the UN system has proven to be more flexible and adaptable than critics suggest.
The UN’s inbox is a challenging one due to events such as the after-effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the conflict in Gaza. Russia’s Security Council vetoes have been met with criticism by the General Assembly, and Gaza has been a similarly polarizing event.
Israeli delegates alleged that members of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency assisted in the October 7th strike on Israel, while Palestinian officials condemned the International Court of Justice for not calling for a ceasefire. Deepening political divisions between countries have doubtless complicated the work of the UN.
At the same time, political polarization between UN member states is mirrored by a partisan divide within the US public. According to a 2024 Pew Research study, 78% of Democrats saw a benefit in UN membership, compared to 42% of Republicans.
Additionally, only 31% of Democrats saw a decrease in the UN’s influence, whereas 42% of Republicans differed. The UN’s challenge has grown with the new administration, as its efforts to cut funding have replaced multilateralism with nationalism.
Recent efforts to ask Congress to reduce previously appropriated money to WHO, UNRWA, and UN peacekeeping are emblematic of a broader trend in which the UN is asked to work with less.
The Secretary-General’s developing response to the UN’s financial challenges, known as UN 80, is not without critics. The plan aims to identify efficiencies, review mandates from Member States, and propose a deeper set of program realignments.
While reducing ongoing turf battles between UN peace operations and UN political and peacebuilding affairs would certainly be laudable, there are natural questions, just as there are with any reform, over how much is just pure cost-cutting and how much is efficiency-improving.
The prevalence of leaks and communications problems along with limited voices of SIDS, NGOS and LDCs surrounding UN 80 is indicative of the challenge any reform faces, especially one that focuses on reducing personnel costs.
Despite these challenges, President Yang made a case for optimism about the UN. His case had three elements. First, President Yang stressed the importance of the General Assembly as the most representative, deliberative body of the organization, which has 193 member states.
It stands out from other international organizations as the only one that can bring together member countries under the same roof and provide an environment for diplomacy and solutions.
The centrality of the General Assembly led President Yang to his second point, recapping the past history of reform to underscore that the UN has risen to challenges in the past. Kofi Annan’s In Larger Freedom, the 2000 Millennium Summit, the Brahimi Report, and the 2006 Creation of the Human Rights Council, and others have proven that the UN is transformable.
The General Assembly has, in turn, historically helped the UN to be a functioning organization. As President Yang claimed in paraphrasing Dag Hammarskjöld, ''We are not in heaven, but we are not in hell either.”
Finally, this reform agenda has continued with the Pact for the Future, which was adopted by heads of state and government in New York in September 2024. It presents a multilateral system seeking to be more just, more inclusive, and more effective.
The pact’s two main annexes prioritize youth and future generations to ensure that we act with tomorrow in mind and to infuse the United Nations' work with long-term thinking. For President Yang, the Pact is a crucial sign that the UN is committed to overcoming structural and functional obstacles that reduce its efficiency.
His optimism towards the reform stems from the potential of the Pact for the Future to modify international cooperation according to present realities and revitalize multilateralism. And it is worth stressing that the Pact for the Future predated the change of US administration, showing that the UN is capable of rising to the challenge.
The UN may be facing a crisis moment. However, it is certainly not ending. It is shifting and evolving, as it has in the past, as a response to emerging trends put forward by member states. The ongoing international conflicts unveil the need for inclusive approaches to diplomacy, global cooperation, and multilateralism. Only the UN can make these inclusive approaches a reality.
Nyada Bryant is a graduate student at Seton Hall University's School of Diplomacy and International Relations, where she specializes on negotiations and foreign policy. She serves as an executive member of two campus organizations and strives to make a difference.
Zuleyha Cite is a graduate student at the Seton Hall University School of Diplomacy and International Relations, specializing in International Organizations, International Peace & Security, and UN Studies. She serves as a Graduate Assistant in the School of Diplomacy and is an active student in leadership initiatives on campus who aims to make a meaningful impact.
Martin Edwards is a Professor and Associate Dean at Seton Hall University's School of Diplomacy and International Relations.
IPS UN Bureau
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