The UN Secretary-General today stressed the need to put an end to world conflicts before the leaders of Russia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates and China, meeting at the BRICS summit in India.
© Lusa
13/09/2026
by
Lusa
“ Dand Gaza, going through the wider crisis in the Middle East, to Ukraine, Sudan and beyond, our world needs peace,” said António Guterres, during his speech, quoted by Efe.
The plenary session in the Indian capital, New Delhi, the second and last of the block summit, joined Guterres with leaders such as Russian Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, and the Crown Prince of Abu Dabi, Khaled bin Mohamed Al Nahyan.
Guterres' words appear after the members signed a joint statement on Saturday with 140 points, which devoted several chapters to Gaza, Palestine and Lebanon and specifically mentioned Israel, but which did not include any reference to Ukraine.
In his appeal, Portuguese defended freedom of international navigation, respect for territorial integrity and political independence of States under international law.
“ As we move irreversibly towards a multipolar world, countries must work to strengthen and safeguard a multilateral system that meets everyone’s needs,” Guterres added.
The UN leader has again demanded a comprehensive reform of his Security Council and international financial institutions which, in his view, no longer reflect the reality of the planet because they have been created under an obsolete order today.
“ Today's economic, demographic and geopolitical realities are not those of 1945 (...). This requires the reform of multilateral institutions, including the UN Security Council and the Bretton Woods system, to reflect the current world,” he added.
With regard to the adoption this September of a new world map in the General Assembly, which corrects the distortions of Mercator’s traditional map, Guterres urged the institutions to “do the same” before a new reality of powers.