Remarks by the President of the General Assembly,
H.E Ms. Annalena Baerbock
A Commemoration of UN@80: A Living Legacy
Friday, 19 September 2025
[As Delivered]
Good evening,
Many of you may have seen the article in the New York Times a few days ago about the postcard sent from the UN in 1953.
Alan Ball, from Idaho, sent the postcard to his family. It was lost to time, but resurfaced, 72 years later.
I found it interesting that even back then this young man visited the UN on his stopover in New York.
The UN was still new then, yet even then it mattered to people.
We often forget, in the trenches of bureaucracy, politics and diplomacy, how much this institution matters to ordinary people.
To the people like Mr. Ball – and the one million visitors who come through the doors each year.
And to those in every country of the world whose lives are impacted by the work we, you, do.
Ask the displaced how the work of UNHCR or IOM has mattered to them.
Ask a person living with HIV/AIDS how the work of UNAIDS has mattered.
Or ask the farmer in the Sahel how seeds, provided by FAO, has mattered.
Every single day, you, the living legacy of this organization, affect the lives of people around the world.
You defend those most vulnerable.
You stand for human rights, even in the darkest days.
You champion the plight of the unseen, the unheard, and the forgotten.
Mr. Secretary-General,
Madame Deputy Secretary-General,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
On Monday we will commemorate the 80th anniversary of the United Nations.
This is a moment to celebrate the people who make this institution.
But it is also a moment of profound reflection on what this institution represents.
What it represented to the people of 1945, who sought refuge from the scourge of war.
What it represents to the people today, who call out for the UN to live up to its promise.
It comes at a critical moment of change and evolution within the UN itself.
As I will say in my remarks on Monday – change is necessary – but it must be built on the principles and spirit of the UN Charter.
Principles that are upheld every day by the women and men of the UN, by you.
Who have dedicated their lives
to humanitarian relief,
to peacekeeping,
to the protection of human rights,
and to sustainable development.
Who have, far too often, given those lives in service… in Iraq, in Gaza…
168 women and men lost their lives in 2024 alone standing up for the principles of our Charter.
These are the people – the heroes – who embody multilateralism in action.
Dear colleagues,
It is an honour to join you in celebrating this living legacy of the United Nations.
You carry out the quiet, often thankless work, away from the limelight, yet indispensable to this Organization—to making it stronger, to make it better, together.
You are the reason we can take pride in the United Nations today, the reason why a young visitor walking through these halls may look back, eighty years from now, with pride at having once stood here.
I thank you.