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The speech made by US President Donald Trump at the UN this week was considered absurd by many, especially when he claimed to have ended seven “unendable” wars during his eight-month tenure. However, his words reflect what everybody in the world is feeling: that the UN, and especially its Security Council, is no longer capable of bringing conflicts to an end. But the reasons for this are not a UN problem, they are a problem of the big powers like the US, China and Russia.

World leaders have gathered for the UN General Assembly in New York this week, as they have done for the past 80 years. But unlike the mere talking shops they have held previously, a sense of urgency and pressure could be felt in the speeches of most leaders this year — and for various reasons. However, all of them fell short of calling for an extraordinary summit to redraw the big powers’ goals and agree on a roadmap to achieve them. Following such a summit, a less conflictive world could emerge. It could stop the forever wars and their expensive human, material and ecological costs.

From France to South Korea and from South Africa to Suriname, speeches at the UNGA pledged support for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ call to work together to address the global challenges of war, poverty and climate chaos. They backed choosing peace over war, law over lawlessness, and a future where nations come together rather than scramble for their own interests.

The question is how to turn all this rhetoric into practical steps that can lure other nations, especially the superpowers, away from conflict and toward peace? Apart from Trump's speech, which was clearly directed at his domestic “Make America Great Again” supporters, the leaders generally managed to point to the factors fueling the descent of the world into this chaotic state of conflictive narratives, uncertainty and fear.

Most leaders backed peace over war and a future where nations come together rather than scramble for their own interests

Mohamed Chebaro

Either side of Trump’s 58-minute address in front of a silent hall, other leaders delivered veiled but astute warnings about the state of our world. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s poignant speech stood out, as he spoke about the loss of US authority without mentioning Trump. He warned of the threat posed by the new authoritarians, reminding everyone that the ideals that inspired the UN’s founding fathers in San Francisco are today under threat.

“There is a clear parallel between the multilateralism crisis and the weakening of democracy,” Lula said. “Authoritarianism is strengthened when we fail to act in the face of arbitrary acts. When international society falters in defending peace, sovereignty and the rule of law, the consequences are tragic. Throughout the world, antidemocratic forces are trying to subjugate institutions and stifle freedoms. They worship violence, praise ignorance, act as physical and digital militias, and restrict the press.”

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto received warm applause when asserting that “might cannot be right, right must be right.” And Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke for most delegates when he insisted that leaders must be restrained when they become out of control, like Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has. Erdogan warned that those who remain silent in the face of barbarity are complicit in the crimes committed.

Speaker after speaker diagnosed the same problems and the majority of them recognized that the UN and multilateralism remain a prized vehicle to protect humanity in a world that is in transition. Dwindling resources, increased greed, military interventions, global warming and climate change are changing the planet we live on. One can add to that the digital transformation and the unchecked and unregulated social media realm, which is tearing at the social order in many otherwise coherent and cohesive countries.

Speaker after speaker recognized that the UN and multilateralism remain a prized vehicle to protect humanity

Mohamed Chebaro

If it is to stay relevant and save multilateralism, the UN should be revolutionary for once and declare a global emergency that requires direct action. This would be through gathering all the elephants in one room. And I am not talking about 192 independent nations, but maybe getting two dozen leaders who agree with what has been said in the majority of the speeches at this year’s UNGA into a room with the superpowers. Together, they should come up with a roadmap that addresses their own interests but also the survival of the planet and its people.

In the last decade, the big powers, as well as rising global actors, have reached an inflection point and they now disagree on most issues, from Russia’s war in Ukraine to the Gaza genocide, from Sudan to Congo. It is high time that a covenant was created and signed that commits to a reformed world order that ensures peace and a protected environment. This would allow people and businesses to thrive, ending the constant and ever-rising uncertainty and anxiety that results from ignorance, greed and the race for profits, which could ultimately shake the central tenets of society and their durability.

Leaders of all nations and ideologies should agree on one thing — and that is to meet and disagree, as this would be the first step on the long road to finding common ground and reasonable answers to the questions that initially seem diverse but are in fact the same regardless of color, creed, geography, demography or wealth. The world that evolved after the Second World War has become ever more interconnected and it is in upholding that interconnectedness that solutions and accommodations could be found. Isolation and individual solutions have proven to be untenable.

• Mohamed Chebaro is a British-Lebanese journalist with more than 25 years’ experience covering war, terrorism, defense, current affairs and diplomacy.