UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday condemned the selective application of the United Nations Charter, warning that its principles must not be treated as optional.
"Today, we see assaults on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter like never before: the threat or use of force against sovereign nations; the violation of international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law; the targeting of civilians and civilian infrastructure; the weaponisation of food and water; the erosion of human rights," Guterres said at a UN General Assembly event marking the 80th anniversary of the Charter’s signing, as reported by Xinhua.
"On and on, we see an all-too-familiar pattern: follow when the charter suits, ignore when it does not," he added.
"The Charter of the United Nations is not optional. It is not an à la carte menu. It is the bedrock of international relations. We cannot and must not normalise violations of its most basic principles."
Guterres described the UN Charter as "a declaration of hope — and the foundation of international cooperation for a better world."
"The charter has given us the tools to change destinies, save lives, and deliver hope to the most desperate corners of the world. And we can draw a direct line from the creation of the United Nations and the prevention of a third world war," he said.
Reaffirming the Charter’s enduring relevance, the secretary-general called for countries to uphold both its spirit and its letter. "On this anniversary, I urge all member states to live up to the spirit and letter of the charter, to the responsibilities it demands, and to the future it summons us to build — for peace, for justice, for progress, for we the peoples."
The UN Charter, the founding document of the organisation, was adopted on 25 June 1945 at the San Francisco Conference and signed the following day by delegates from the original 50 member states. - June 27, 2025
