I thank Chancellor Merkel and the German government and people for your warm welcome.
I am pleased to be here to mark the 75th anniversary of the United Nations with such a strong, reliable and innovative partner.
And it is good to be here now.
International cooperation has been tested this year like never before.
Through decisive action, Chancellor Merkel and Germany helped show the world what global solidarity looks like.
This morning at the Bundestag I had the privilege to speak about some of the seeds of hope that Germany is helping to plant around the world.
I applaud Germany’s leadership, both domestically and globally, in taking on the COVID-19 challenge – and your generous support for the ACT-Accelerator to develop tools to fight the pandemic.
We need to continue working together to ensure that the vaccine is considered a global public good – a people’s vaccine – available and affordable for all.
We are also meeting in the wake of last Saturday’s Climate Ambition Summit.
I appealed to leaders worldwide to declare a State of Climate Emergency in their countries until carbon neutrality is reached.
And I asked for urgent action to get on the right path.
I thank Germany, and the Chancellor personally, for guiding the EU towards enhanced climate ambition as well as a greener budget.
Under the German Presidency, the European Union has secured landmark pandemic economic relief and endorsed a more ambitious Paris Agreement target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030.
Domestically, Germany has also taken important steps on climate ambition, including through its commitment to phase out coal and by developing creative proposals for a just and managed transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy and energy efficiency.
We now look to the EU to put in place the policy and legislation needed to fully implement its new Paris target, and realise its aspiration to become the first region in the world to achieve net zero emissions.
We also look to the EU to continue to provide support to those developing countries that need it to enhance their own climate ambition and recover sustainably from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The world is still far off course from achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement – and the planet is tragically on course to a temperature rise of more than 3 degrees by the end of the century.
We must act urgently to bend that curve.
German leadership can continue to show the way – as it also did during its two-year tenure as an elected member of the Security Council.
We are grateful for Germany’s exceptional support of peacekeeping and your active contributions to our mediation mandates as well as our peacebuilding efforts.
Chancellor Merkel and I discussed a number of crisis situations, including Libya – where she and Germany have played a pivotal role in forging peace – not least through hosting the Berlin International Conference on Libya last January in Berlin.
Across the board, we have come to rely on Germany’s principled stance and leadership.
We are grateful for Germany’s championing of human rights worldwide and your crucial support for the UN’s work on human rights.
I would also like to express my deepest gratitude to Germany and its people for your generosity in humanitarian and development assistance.
Through your actions, you continue to demonstrate Germany’s solidarity and your role as a responsible global citizen.
If you will allow one last personal word. As I noted at the Bundestag this morning, this is the 75th anniversary of the UN – and also the 250th anniversary of the birth of Ludwig van Beethoven.
In his Ode to Joy, Beethoven himself added a few words to the poem by Schiller. He began:
“O Freunde, nicht diese Töne!”
In other words, change the tone.
It’s a message that speaks to us today.
In these difficult times, Chancellor Merkel has stood out – with courage, leadership and determination – to change the tone.
To heal divisions. To help solve big challenges. To bring the world together.
I recognize and salute her for her leadership and I thank you.