GENEVA – The United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday called for a comprehensive overhaul of the global security architecture, warning that the international order that has governed security relations for nearly eight decades is rapidly shifting. Speaking at the opening of the UN Human Rights Council’s annual session in Geneva, Guterres described the current period as one marked by “chaos and change,” emphasizing the urgent need for a sober, analytical approach to global security.
“Human rights are under a full-scale attack around the world,” Guterres said, stressing that the rule of law is being increasingly overshadowed by the rule of force. He warned that these assaults on human rights and international norms are happening openly and often led by the most powerful states, rather than covert actors.
While he did not name every conflict explicitly, Guterres voiced particular concern over the ongoing war in Ukraine, noting that more than 15,000 civilians have been killed in four years of violence. “It is more than past time to end the bloodshed,” he said, calling for urgent international action.
The UN chief also criticized the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories, highlighting “blatant violations of human rights, human dignity and international law.” He warned that the prospects for a two-state solution are being deliberately undermined. “The trajectory in these territories is stark, clear and purposeful: the two-state solution is being stripped away in broad daylight. The international community cannot allow it to happen,” he said.
Guterres warned that the erosion of rights is not confined to conflict zones. “We are living in a world where mass suffering is excused away, where humans are used as bargaining chips, and where international law is treated as a mere inconvenience,” he said. His remarks pointed to a growing global trend in which power and domination are increasingly prioritized over human rights and legal norms.
Echoing Guterres’ concerns, UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk warned of a “deeply worrying trend” in which supremacy and domination are re-emerging on the world stage. He stressed that the competition for power, control, and resources is accelerating at a pace unseen in the last 80 years. “The use of force to resolve disputes between and within countries is becoming normalized,” Turk said.
Turk highlighted shifting global power dynamics and called for collective action to protect human rights and counter rising autocratic trends. Without naming specific leaders, he criticized those who act as if they are above international law and the UN Charter. “Some claim exceptional status, exceptional danger, or exceptional moral judgment to pursue their own agenda at any cost,” he said, highlighting the weaponization of economic leverage by powerful states to advance national interests.
Together, Guterres and Turk underscored that the international community must urgently adapt to these changes, strengthen the global rule of law, and ensure that human rights are safeguarded in an increasingly volatile world.
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