As Trump wields the axe, who will fight to save the UN?
6/7/2025: The biggest contributor, at 22%, to the UN’s core budget is about to conclude a review of its membership. The US is not the only country falling short in its obligations to the UN. Will the global democracies fight to stop these rogue states dismantling the world’s best defence against a thrid workd war?
Source: The Guardian
Twenty years of the UN’s Responsibility to Protect
26/6/2025: UN member states have reiterated their commitment to the prevention of genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity, known as the Responsibility to Protect doctrine, established 20 years ago. Implementation has been marked by inconsistency and hypocrisy of states, notably those holding a veto.
Source: Inter Press Service
US again blocks appointments to resolve global trade disputes
24/6/2025: For the 88th time, the US has blocked a proposal for expeditiously filling all seven vacancies in the Appellate Body of the World Trade Organization. As the system for settling trade disputes remains broken, multilateral rules and the rule of law appear to be the major casualty.
Source: Third World Network
As the rules of global cooperation shift, here is plan B
5/6/2025: The international landscape in mid-2025 is characterized by a retreat from liberal institutionalism, as seen by the US withdrawal from the UN Sustainable Development Goals. An alternative approach champions flexible coalitions of countries and groups bound by shared values and interests.
Source: Devex
Results of survey on UN reform options
1/6/2025: An informal survey of almost 1500 readers sheds light on opinion about the UN Secretary-General's plan to reshape the UN system. The most popular proposals are merging the peace and security departments and unifying human rights efforts into a single department.
Source: PassBlue
UN chief outlines plans for thousands of new job cuts
28/5/2025: The UN Secretary-General is seeking to eliminate 20% of jobs across the UN Secretariat, which employs some 35,000 people. The proposed cuts are designed to prepare the world body for a massive reduction in U.S. financial support.
Source: Devex
UN chief outlines ‘painful’ survival plan for world body
12/5/2025: UN Secretary-General António Guterres proposes steep cuts in the agency's spending, staff, and programs, in response to the Trump administration’s campaign to cut up to 87% of its contributions to UN activities. Guterres outlined a series of measures, from layoffs to the relocation of staff to less expensive countries.
Source: Devex
US toys with membership of World Trade Organization
9/5/2025: The US has not paid its annual contribution to the World Trade Organization, whilst blatantly violating and exploiting the core provisions of its rules. The Trump administration is reviewing US membership of international organizations.
Source: Third World Network
Economic Community of West African States: fifty and fractured
30/4/2025: Half a century after ECOWAS promised peace and prosperity, three breakaway states are testing West African solidarity. In recent years Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger have experienced the overthrow of democratically elected governments and have become more closely aligned with China and Russia.
Source: Inter Press Service
Can the UN restructure to remain relevant?
29/4/2025: In March 2025 the UN Secretary-General launched UN80, an initiative to modernise the UN. Once a taboo subject, structural changes are now firmly on the agenda, even the potential merger of UN entities is now openly being discussed.
Source: The Global Observatory