Diplomacy is the way to address global challenges, Brazil tells General Assembly

Opening this year’s General Debate, the President – known to all as Lula – expressed his indignation at the widespread attacks taking place on multilateralism worldwide.

According to the Brazilian leader, more effective diplomacy is the only way for collective challenges to be successfully addressed.

He said the organization's credibility has been weakened due to paralysis of the Security Council, the use of veto powers and growing geopolitical tensions.

“We are all held hostage by the inaction of the Security Council” he said, stressing that Brazil has spoken out against the use of veto power by permanent members in the chamber since the first general assembly meeting in 1946. 

The Brazilian leader recalled that the previous year had seen the highest number of armed conflicts registered since the Second World War.

He called for regional conflicts to be contained before they escalate into “tragedies of global proportions”.

Turning to the conflict in the Middle East, Lula said that “generations of Palestinians” will now carry “the pain and trauma left by the genocide of women and children,” criticising the expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank – all making a two-State solution increasingly difficult to achieve. 

Lula also addressed the war between Russia and Ukraine, saying the conflict had continued to claim lives and that there would be “no winners on the battlefield”.

He also highlighted key policies at home, noting that Brazil has once again made inroads against hunger and adopted a new law to combat corruption and organised crime – which has led to a record level of seizures of drugs, assets and illicit funds.

“The fight against corruption shall remain relentless," Lula said. "No matter who it hurts. No one is above the law.”

On climate change, President Lula said that, in an era of disinformation, those who reject scientific evidence are denying reality.

He said economic development should always go hand in hand with environmental protection.

The president also called for greater regulation of large technology companies and artificial intelligence (AI), warning against a technological race without ethical safeguards.

In his closing remarks, Lula highlighted the UN's historic role in decolonisation, human rights, sustainable development and the protection of migrants and refugees.

He called on Member States to find the political will to once again make the UN a “temple of peace”