Remarks by the President of the General Assembly,
H.E Ms. Annalena Baerbock,
15^th Plenary Meeting on the Use of the Veto

1 October 2025

General Assembly Hall

[As Delivered]

A hand raised.

A simple no.

 

It might look mundane whenever a permanent member of the Security Council casts a veto.

 

An almost effortless act.

 

Yet the effects are consequential.

 

They reverberate far beyond the Security Council chamber, beyond New York; felt by communities across the world.

 

A veto can extinguish hope for those trapped in conflict.

 

It falls hardest on those who turn to the United Nations for peace, for relief, for a path out of suffering. For hope.

 

And when it results in constant blockages, it can damage the credibility of this whole institution.

 

The Charter makes clear that the Council carries the primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security, under Article 24

 

Yet the veto is not a privilege.

 

It is a responsibility, entrusted to five nations, to be exercised rarely.

In the spirit of peace and security for all.

 

That responsibility must never forget the lives it touches.

 

Lives like those in Gaza, where the situation is catastrophic.

 

In the past days, weeks and months, men, women, and children have been killed while sheltering or waiting for food.

 

Those who survive are mourning in cold tents.

 

They are starving.

 

They are searching for clean water. Thousands of children without parents.

 

At the same time, hostages remain in captivity, in unimaginable conditions.

 

Their families wait in torment, not knowing whether they are alive or dead.

 

A situation that is politically and morally unacceptable, and where the world is wondering where the United Nations is.

The situation in Gaza is precisely the kind of crisis where the United Nations is called upon to act.

 

Where failure to act undermines the credibility of this Organization itself.

 

Therefore, we owe it not only to the people of Gaza but also to our institution, if we are to preserve faith in it – to act now.

 

Especially as it is clear what must be done.

 

The world calls for an immediate ceasefire.

 

For unhindered access to humanitarian aid and for the immediate release of all hostages.

 

As the deeply regrettable deadlock of the principal organ of the United Nations tasked with maintaining peace and security erodes global trust in the United Nations itself.

 

It is therefore important that today, Member States take up this responsibility, by bringing this topic to the General Assembly, the heart of the United Nations, through the debate on the use of the veto.

 

The Veto Initiative, as many of you know, has existed since 2022.

 

In that time, twenty vetoes have been cast.

 

And each time the General Assembly has stepped in to provide an essential measure of accountability, as the United Nations’ most representative organ, which is empowered by Article 10 of the Charter to deliberate on matters of peace and security.

 

Each time, this Assembly has been convened, it ensured that the veto is not exercised in silence but subjected to the scrutiny of the international community.

 

Excellencies,

 

Also today, the Assembly underlines by this plenary meeting, that it is not the United Nations as an institution failing on Gaza.

 

UN staff is even risking their lives to overcome the blockage of humanitarian aid.

 

And the wider membership of this organization have spoken with clarity.

 

The resolution vetoed in the Security Council contained the core demands that were already adopted by this Assembly:

• An immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire respected by all parties;

 

• The immediate and dignified release of all hostages held by Hamas and other groups;

 

• And the immediate lifting of all restrictions on the entry and distribution of humanitarian aid throughout Gaza, delivered safely and at scale by the United Nations and its partners, in respect of international humanitarian law and its obligations.

These same demands were reaffirmed only weeks ago in the New York Declaration, endorsed by a large majority of Member States.

And the good news is that since the moment the veto debate has been put on the agenda, these demands, together with last week’s High-Level International Conference on the Two-State Solution, have already had an impact, including the clear call that annexation will never be accepted.

 

On Monday, the President of the United States presented a plan—building on earlier proposals from Arab, Muslim countries, European states, the United States itself and many others—for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, a massive increase in humanitarian aid, and the release of all hostages.

 

These calls have now to be implemented without delay or reservation by both the Israeli government and Hamas. If implemented it would finally offer the opportunity to end the war in Gaza.

 

As outlined by the many GA’s resolutions, we must seize this chance to end the suffering in Gaza now.

 

The Israeli–Palestinian conflict cannot be resolved through endless war, permanent occupation, or recurrent terror.

 

The only path to lasting peace, security, and dignity for both Palestinians and Israelis is the two-state solution.

 

After the war in Gaza, as many countries in the General Assembly underlined at the beginning of this week, we need sustained dialogue, credible negotiations, and tangible steps toward realising the two-state solution, in line with the UN Charter, international law, relevant UN resolutions and the New York Declaration.

 

That is the path to justice.

 

That is the path to peace.

 

And that is how we uphold the principles and credibility of this Organisation.