Lama: The role of the UN in crisis, reform almost impossible without support of major powers

The role of the United Nations, according to political analyst from Pristina, Alma Lama, is in crisis, and the organization needs reform, but this is almost impossible to achieve without the support of the major powers that are members of the Security Council.

The General Debate of the 80th session of the UN General Assembly begins tomorrow, and in this jubilee year the theme is: “Better Together: 80 Years and Beyond for Peace, Development, and Human Rights.”

On this occasion, Lama told Kosovo Online that the UN is suffering from a diminishing role, because the major powers do not expect international institutions to expand their influence but to reduce it.

“The UN is facing budget cuts by its most important member states. We live in a world that is not multilateral, but one of multi-competition between the great powers, and I see the UN’s role as being in crisis. The US has great influence, but it seems it is not very interested in this institution. On the other hand, the UN Charter is truly being challenged by the war and Russian aggression in Ukraine. China is interested in increasing its power in the world, but not in international institutions. Of course, the UN needs to be reformed, but without the support of the major powers that sit on the Security Council, I see that as nearly impossible,” Lama said.

In her view, the UN faces the enormous challenge of dealing with all the major issues, from wars around the world, to technology and artificial intelligence that could cause global upheaval and therefore require regulation, while interest in tackling climate issues has waned.

“Moreover, the UN cannot do anything if it lacks a budget. It can pass a resolution in the General Assembly, since this is now harder to achieve in the Security Council, but solving problems requires both funding and political will from member states. We are living through a redefinition of the UN’s mission, and this redefinition is not aligned with the needs or demands facing the world, but with power. We see more and more competition between the major powers and less and less cooperation among them,” Lama concluded.