General Assembly
President of the 80th Session

Annalena Baerbock

Her Excellency Annalena Baerbock
President-elect of the 80th Session of the General Assembly

Ambassador Annalena Baerbock served as Germany’s Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs from December 2021 until May 2025. In this role, she was a strong advocate for the multilateral system with the United Nations at its core.

In 2018, she was elected Co-Chairperson of Alliance 90/The Greens and held the position of party leader until 2022. She was an elected member of the German Bundestag from 2013 until June 2025.

Prior to that, she served as Chairperson of her party in the federal State of Brandenburg. Before being elected to the Bundestag herself, Annalena Baerbock advised her party’s parliamentary group in the German Bundestag on matters of foreign and security policy. From 2005 to 2008, she served as Head of Office and staff member to Member of the European Parliament Elisabeth Schroedter. Annalena Baerbock was born in Hanover on 15 December 1980.

She holds a Master of Laws (LLM) from the London School of Economics and Political Science and an undergraduate degree in Political Science from the University of Hamburg.

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Vision Statement

Eighty years ago, the United Nations was founded to rally the world behind a shared vision of peace and cooperation.

Eighty years – longer than the average human lifetime.

Even if our ways of living may differ, every person on this planet shares the same aspirations for their life: to live free from poverty, to keep one’s family safe from conflict and violence – no matter where one hails from. Because humanity is indivisible.

Around the globe, the United Nations is the face of this humanity. It saves lives. It prevents conflicts and it helps end violence. It promotes freedom, development, human rights and a healthy planet.

In this spirit, the Preamble of the Charter of the United Nations underlines the “equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small” – a cornerstone of the international order.

However, on its eightieth anniversary, the multilateral system, with the United Nations at its core, is under massive pressure, both politically and financially. The heart of this system, the General Assembly, cannot afford to stand still. We cannot afford to be driven apart by self-interest and distrust. In my view, we need to adapt the way in which we respond to the challenges of our lifetime to today’s realities. Together.

We need to join efforts to forge a better future for all. In doing so, the Charter of the United Nations will remain the bedrock of our collective aspirations and our joint work.

As the General Assembly, the world’s most representative body, we bear a shared responsibility to protect our past achievements, to address current global issues, and to adapt to future challenges. During my term as President of the General Assembly, if elected, I commit to act in this endeavour as an honest broker here in New York, working transparently and inclusively. I will engage in trust-based dialogue with all Member States to build consensus, so that the United Nations can deliver for present and future generations.

Better together: focus, reform and transparency at the United Nations

In the face of unprecedented challenges, the time for action is now.

It is my humble assessment that there is a growing sentiment among Member States on the need to focus the work of the United Nations, implementing the many important decisions and mandates that we are already entrusted with.

For this, the United Nations requires adequate funding, as well as effective and efficient structures, with better coordination and without duplication. I will put a strong focus on promoting reforms, in close coordination with the Secretary-General’s UN80 Initiative and in partnership with all Member States. The General Assembly, where all Member States have a seat and a voice, should deliberate on how our Organization can best make decisions that benefit all.

We should not refrain from bold thinking across the entire United Nations system to make the Organization focused, fit-for-purpose and capable of realizing its core objectives, in line with its founding principles. The Pact for the Future is our blueprint for the actions we need to take in order to deliver a better future for humanity. Its implementation will be at the core of my presidency, building on the agenda set forth by my predecessors.

A strong United Nations in challenging times requires dedicated leadership.

During the eightieth session of the General Assembly, the United Nations is to select its next Secretary-General. To me, it will be of utmost importance to organize the selection process, in line with General Assembly resolutions, building on past best practices. Transparency and inclusiveness will be my guiding principles.

Better together: a United Nations that delivers on peace, sustainability and justice

The Charter of the United Nations gives the General Assembly a central role in the quest to build and sustain lasting peace. This is and will remain a fundamental priority.

To me, it is crucial to further strengthen this role in close collaboration with the Security Council and the Peacebuilding Commission, while fostering innovative partnerships for peace. Sustainable peace can only be achieved when everyone is involved. Humanity is indivisible.

I will therefore pay special attention to the full, equal, safe and meaningful participation of women and young people in all peace efforts. The twenty-fifth anniversary of Security Council resolution 1325 (2000) presents a timely opportunity to advance the implementation of the women and peace and security agenda. Because where women are not safe, no one is safe.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is an important pillar to build a more just and sustainable world. I stand ready to help facilitate progress in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, including advancing socioeconomic development and eradicating poverty, objectives that faced significant setbacks during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. The World Summit for Social Development will be an opportunity for world leaders to foster inclusive social development.

I will do my utmost to help advance the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals in close cooperation with the Economic and Social Council and other relevant players. A strong outcome and follow-up to the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development, including support for the reform of the international financial architecture, will be key to achieving this objective. Because our financial institutions have to reflect the realities of the twenty-first century.

In order to make our world more just and secure, we need to strengthen our resolve in fighting the climate crisis. The climate crisis knows no borders. No country can hide from its consequences. With every tenth of a degree that temperatures rise, our world grows more dangerous, particularly for the most vulnerable States, and more people will be forced to leave the place they call home. If we do not act now, we will have much higher costs to deal with in the future. But the opposite is also true. If we join forces to contain the biggest security crisis of this century, we can also boost growth and development around the world. Better together.

As President of the General Assembly, I will make sure that the Assembly retains its role as a body in which both sustainable development and climate justice are being brought forward.

We know that security, sustainable development and human rights are interlinked. Respect for international law, international human rights law and international humanitarian law is essential for a world in which every human can live in peace and dignity. Therefore, fostering justice and accountability should remain priorities of the General Assembly’s work.

Digital and emerging technologies are dramatically changing our lives. We must embrace their potential across all three pillars of the United Nations, while ensuring that such technologies are safe, secure and trustworthy. I will push to bridge digital divides by supporting capacity-building and universal access so that everyone can participate in the digital space.

Better together: in a United Nations that embraces everyone

The General Assembly is the place where all nations come together, where every country has a seat and a voice. These diverse perspectives are our strength. Time and again, we have seen that the work of the Assembly improves when decisions are based on a wide range of inputs and broad consultations. This approach – while sometimes exhausting – will be my guiding star, bearing in mind the critical role played by civil society, science and research, and other stakeholders. I will pay particular attention to youth voices and their interests, because building a better future is only possible by engaging with the generations to come.

To ensure that the General Assembly is a truly global forum, multilingualism will remain a vital concern during my term.

I am committed to building a table that seats everyone, recalling that our Organization can only continue to fulfil its promises by striving to include everyone in all endeavours.

As we mark the eightieth anniversary of the founding of the United Nations, I pledge to work with all Member States to build a strong, focused and inclusive United Nations. Guided by our Charter, which lays out the “equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small”.

Striving to forge a better future for all. Together.

Annalena Baerbock – my candidature for the post of President of the General Assembly of the United Nations at its eightieth session

I thank the members of the Group of Western European and Other States for supporting my candidature. I am grateful to all – and I mean all – who have lent me their ears and shared their perspectives in preparing this vision for my Presidency.

The eightieth session of the General Assembly will be one that stands out. This anniversary reminds us of the vision of the founding mothers and fathers of the United Nations: the belief that the power of the law must prevail over the power of the mighty; the belief that working together is better than competing for limited resources; the belief that all humans are equal and all States sovereign.

My aspiration for this presidency is to build bridges over the gaps that divide us. To listen to all voices in the General Assembly. To rebuild the trust and consensus that is needed to advance our shared agenda.

I have dedicated my political career to working across political trenches to find solutions for global challenges, from the prevention of conflict and violence to the climate crisis.

I have always put people at the centre of my endeavours. It is my deep conviction that diplomacy requires the ability to put ourselves in someone else’s shoes, to understand the motives, aspirations and worries of our interlocutors. Only then will we be able to work together to improve people’s lives.

As the Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs of Germany, I have been a strong advocate for international cooperation, for multilateral diplomacy, and for expanding partnerships to achieve common objectives.

In more than 10 years as an elected Member of the German Parliament, I have worked on a wide range of policy issues, from foreign policy to energy security and social justice. And throughout my career, I have been passionate about finding global answers to the climate crisis, both on a national level and in the context of international climate negotiations at the United Nations climate change conferences.

I am eager to put my dedication and experience at the service of the General Assembly and all Member States of the United Nations, in order to advance global peace, development and human rights.

Download the vision statement 

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Acceptance Speech by H.E. Annalena Baerbock
Following her Election as President of the 80th Session of the General Assembly on 2 June 2025

Mr. President,
Mr. Secretary-General,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,

First of all: My special gratitude to His Excellency, President Philemon Yang, for your kind words and guidance. Your wise, inspiring and unifying leadership of the General Assembly will guide me during my term.

Excellencies, dear colleagues,

Thank you for your overwhelming support and your trust.

I am deeply grateful and humbled to have the honour to serve all of you and preside over the General Assembly during its eightieth session.

As I emphasized at the informal interactive dialogue, I will serve all 193 Member States as an honest broker and as a unifier.

As the President of the General Assembly, I will engage in a trust-based dialogue with all Member States.

My door will always be open for everyone.

BETTER TOGETHER.

This is the theme of my presidency, which will guide my work as President of the General Assembly. And I am grateful to hear it resonates with so many of you.

When visitors come to the General Assembly, they obviously do not enter through these glass doors. Instead, they take a narrow hallway on the third floor. And they stumble across a quote from Dag Hammarskjöld, the second Secretary-General of the United Nations:

“The UN was not created to take mankind to heaven, but to save humanity from hell.”

It is a powerful reminder.

This Organization was founded on the ashes of the Second World War.

Yet the response to the horrors of war was a common vision – not heaven, but a hopeful vision. A vision based on human rights, on respect for international law, on peaceful coexistence and on international cooperation to the benefit of all peoples.

Today, we live in challenging times. We are walking on a tightrope of uncertainty. But the birth of the United Nations 80 years ago reminds us: We have lived through difficult times before. And it is up to us to take on these challenges.

We might come from different regions, from different backgrounds. We might see the world differently. And we might even disagree sometimes.

But when we come together at the United Nations, we are all united by this common vision and by the founding principles of the United Nations.

The Charter is and will remain the irrevocable foundation of our work.

As President of the General Assembly, I will be committed to upholding our Charter and the purposes and principles enshrined within it.

I will focus on what we can do together instead of asking what divides us. Because we are better together.

The eightieth session of the General Assembly will be a crucial moment for our Organization.

The United Nations – the centre of the multilateral system – is under immense pressure. Politically and financially.

More than 120 armed conflicts remind us that the primary mission of the United Nations – “to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war” – remains unaccomplished.

Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals will remain elusive without “bold, ambitious, accelerated, just and transformative actions”, which we committed to in the Pact for the Future. Yet nothing would be better without the United Nations.

We have achieved much together over the past 80 years.

Just as the founding fathers – and also a few founding mothers – of our Organization resolved to combine their efforts, we also need to join efforts.

To preserve what the United Nations has achieved since its establishment in 1945.

To address current global crises.

And to adapt to emerging and future challenges.

As President, my first key objective will be to support Member States to renew, to refocus and to make our Organization fit for purpose, fit for the twenty-first century.

This Organization requires adequate, reliable funding. At the same time, we need to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the entire system.

Mr. Secretary-General, I would like to thank you for your leadership in this respect and for launching the UN80 Initiative. This initiative is an important opportunity to make the United Nations stronger and more effective.

As do many delegations, I welcome the fact that you have committed to closely consult with Member States during this process.

As President of the General Assembly, I will place a strong emphasis on ensuring that the perspectives and interests of all Member States are considered. This means that we, as the General Assembly, also have to do our homework.

While we need to be bold, ambitious and ready to take difficult decisions, the UN80 Initiative should not be a mere cost-cutting exercise.

Our common goal is a strong, focused, nimble and fit-for-purpose Organization. One that is capable of realizing its core objectives.

We need a United Nations that delivers on peace, development and justice.

This brings me to the second main task for the upcoming session.

The Pact for the Future is our blueprint for the actions we need to take in order to forge a better future for all.

People around the world must feel that our work makes a real difference in their daily lives.

The General Assembly is the most representative and the main deliberative and policymaking body of the United Nations. It is in our hands to use this role to its full potential.

It is key to further strengthen the role of the General Assembly with regard to peace and security matters, in close cooperation with the Security Council and the Peacebuilding Commission.

However, lasting peace will never be reached without sustainable development.

Yet less than one fifth of the Sustainable Development Goal targets are on track.

A key focus of the eightieth session will therefore be to advance the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, working closely with the Economic and Social Council and other relevant partners.

The three pillars of the Charter of the United Nations– peace and security, development, and human rights – are deeply interconnected.

Respect for international law, international human rights law and international humanitarian law are essential for a world in which every person can live in peace, prosperity and dignity.

BETTER TOGETHER is a team sport: My third priority is a United Nations that embraces everyone.

I see the diversity of the General Assembly as our strength. This is the place where all nations come together and where every country has a seat and a voice.

As President, I aim to ensure that this multitude of perspectives is taken into account. That every Member State, region and group is heard.

That the General Assembly is a truly inclusive forum: By activating, for example, the General Committee and by building on the different interactive formats of my predecessors.

This includes the revitalization process as well as the selection of the next Secretary-General, which will be at the centre of the eightieth session.

Transparency and inclusiveness will be key.

I will organize the selection process in line with General Assembly resolutions and build on past best practices.

However, I depend on your support and commitment. Because the General Assembly will only be as strong as the commitment of its members.

As only the fifth woman in this position in 80 years, I am fully aware that peace and development can be sustained only when half of the world’s population, when women, have an equal seat at the table.

Inclusive multilateralism also means to engage with civil society and especially with young people. It improves the outcome and the legitimacy when decisions of the General Assembly are based on a wide range of input and broad consultations.

Active communication and promoting a better understanding of the United Nations will be vital during the eightieth session. In particular in these times of disinformation.

To ensure that we foster our understanding and no voice is left unheard, I commit to promoting multilingualism – a core value of the United Nations.

I will embed this principle into the daily work of my Office, building on the great work of my predecessor, and with a truly diverse and multilingual team of the Office of the President of the General Assembly in which all regional groups are represented. This is possible only through your generous contributions to the trust fund and great secondments to my team from all different regional groups, for which I am thankful.

Mr. President, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, 80 years on, the world does not look like heaven. But it is our world. And this is the task of our time:

To make the United Nations fit for purpose, fit for the future.

To uphold the Charter.

To deliver tangible results for everyone.

And I am honoured to work with all of you in this challenging endeavour.

BETTER TOGETHER.

I thank you.