Europe

[Bilingual, as delivered, scroll down for English]

First of all, thank you very much for your kind invitation. It was for me an enormous pleasure to come again to the St. Petersburg Forum.
 
It is for me a very important opportunity to address the distinguished international audience, governments, business, societies in general on issues that are vital for the United Nations and in particular, in this Forum’s context, the Sustainable Development Goals and the possibility of a fair globalization.
 

President Putin, Heads of State and Government,
Ladies and Gentlemen, all protocol observed,
 
I am very pleased to be making my second visit to this prestigious forum as Secretary-General of the United Nations.  And I thank President Putin and the people of the Russian Federation for hosting this dynamic gathering.
 
St. Petersburg was home to many of the seminal events that marked the 20th century.
 

Su Majestad, Señoras y Señores, 
En primer lugar, quiero dar las gracias a Su Majestad el Rey Felipe VI de España por su presencia aquí hoy y sus amables palabras; significan mucho para mí.

Let me first of all express how grateful I am to Yo-Yo Ma. He is a fantastic Messenger of Peace. 
 
Indeed, if one looks at music, music represents two things that are absolutely crucial for what the UN does. 
 
First, music is a universal language. Music brings us together. Music is a symbol of peace.
 

Thank you very much, Mr. President, for your warm hospitality. It is always a pleasure to come to Vienna. And indeed this time I have two very important reasons to come again.
 
First of all, celebrating 40 years of the UN presence in Vienna is also the moment to express our deep gratitude and appreciation for what has been an exemplary support from Austria as a host country. 
 

Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,
 
I do believe that if Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Johann Strauss had been here today, they would have loved the wonderful piece we all have heard.
 
I want to say that it is good to see Vienna going on with the most fantastic musical tradition of the world. Because music is a universal language. Music is the language of peace. Music is probably the best language we could have in the United Nations.
 

I am pleased to be with you once again to discuss our collective response to the climate crisis.
 
And I thank Governor Schwarzenegger and the R20 coalition for placing focus on the importance of sub-national actors for successful climate action.
 
I have just returned from a trip to the South Pacific where I visited, among others, Tuvalu – a low-lying island nation that faces inundation from rising seas.
 
I was profoundly impressed and profoundly moved.
 
It is clear to me that we have no time to waste.
 

Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
 
Thank you very much for inviting me to address all of you today.
 
Since the end of the Second World War, nations have relied on a system of multilateral institutions and agreements to promote peace and equitable social and economic progress.
 
The World Trade Organization, along with its predecessor, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, is an indispensable component of that system.
 
Trade is at the heart of international relations, and the WTO is at the heart of trade.
 

Ladies and gentlemen of the press,

Thank you very much for your presence.