Welcome to the United Nations

Secretary-General Statements

29 May 2017 | UN Headquarters, New York
Watch English on webtv.un.org: For nearly 70 years, UN peacekeeping has proven to be one of the international community’s most effective investments in peace, security and prosperity.    Demand for UN peacekeepers has risen steadily over the years, and deployment is now near an all-time high. Peacekeeping has had a positive impact on the lives of millions of people around the world.
24 May 2017 | UN Headquarters, New York
Watch the video on webtv.un.org: We are here today to honour the 117 men and woman from 43 countries who lost their lives last year serving under the United Nations flag. The medal we confer at today’s ceremony is named after my predecessor, Dag Hammarskjöld, who lost his life in the cause of peace, like the recipients of this medal.   Those we honour today died while protecting the world’s most vulnerable people and supporting countries in making the difficult transition from conflict to peace. 
24 May 2017 | UN Headquarters, New York
Watch the video on webtv.un.org: It is my great honour to lay a wreath here today to honour the brave women and men who have lost their lives while serving under the UN Flag. As Jean-Pierre Lacroix has said, last year, 117 military, police and civilian peacekeepers from 43 countries have died in service. This means that, since 1948, more than 3,500 peacekeepers have given their lives to rescue other lives. And please join me in a moment of silence as we remember them. Thank you very much.
24 May 2017 | UN Headquarters, New York
[Bilingual, as prepared for delivery] Excellencies,  Ladies and Gentlemen,  We are here today to focus attention on Mali and how we can together best ensure effective support.  I would like to express my particular appreciation to all countries whose troops serve in Mali, and all those who have been supporting Mali and MINUSMA in other ways.  I particularly thank the Member States that announced their intentions to make pledges yesterday, and ask them to do their utmost to ensure swift deployment.
19 Apr 2017 | UN Headquarters, New York
Ladies and gentlemen of the media. Thank you very much for your presence.   I have no doubt that this first conference between the African Union Commission and the United Nations Secretariat represents a landmark in our cooperation.  
18 Apr 2017 | UN Headquarters, New York
[Bilingual version, as delivered; scroll further down for all-English version]   I thank the United States presidency for convening this important meeting.  We are all aware that large-scale human rights violations cause terrible suffering and undermine prospects for sustainable peace and reconciliation.  Healing these wounds is always a difficult and painful process. Yet that responsibility grows with each new instance of mass killings, displacement, and sexual violence.  
6 Apr 2017 | UN Headquarters, New York
[Bilingual version, as delivered] United Nations peacekeeping is an investment in global peace, security, and prosperity. Around the world, the Blue Helmets are the concrete expression of the Charter’s determination “to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war.”  The achievements of peace operations are a source of great pride to us all. When they fail, it causes us pain and drives us to improve. 
23 Mar 2017
I thank His Excellency Mr. Boris Johnson, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs of the United Kingdom, for his presence here today for this important meeting on South Sudan. 
15 Feb 2017 | Cairo University
Honourable President of the Cairo University,  Honourable Ministers,  Excellencies,  Ladies and Gentlemen, Let me say first of all, how grateful I am for this invitation to be here in the same university as one of my predecessor, that I so much admire, Boutros Ghali, as it was said by the honourable Minister, and in a country, Egypt, that is one of the pillars of multilateralism in today’s world. 
30 Jan 2017 | UN Headquarters, New York
Your Excellency Mr. Idriss Deby Itno, President of the Republic of Chad and Chairperson of the African Union, Your Excellency Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Excellencies, All protocol observed, Ladies and Gentlemen, I am honoured to be with you. I humbly join you in profound solidarity and respect.