The UN must adapt itself to a multi-polar world, Maduro declares

UNITED NATIONS.— On September 24, the President of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, called for the transformation and modernization of the UN during his speech made at the 69th Session of the UN General Assembly.

"Today the role of each region is very different to that of 1945, it’s another world," he stated.

"The Charter of the United Nations, truly one of the most beautiful poems we can read, is an instrument that has been cast aside, forgotten, whose fundamental objectives are continuously violated."

He added that the UN must adapt itself to a multi-polar, multi-centric world; with new actors, countries and emerging regions which have their own voices and beliefs and seek to be respected.

Maduro emphasized the historic moment which Latin America is experiencing in the 21st century and its pursuit of integration.

He mentioned the importance of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (Alba), which will soon celebrate its 10th anniversary, and stated modestly that it has come to occupy an important role in the construction of a new social and economic model.

He stated that Petrocaribe, composed of 18 states, is one of the most illustrative projects demonstrating the potential for a new world of peace, justice, solidarity, cooperation and complimentarity.

"Another world is possible and we are demonstrating this in Our America," he said, after highlighting the creation of the Union of South American Nations (Unasur) and its links with the rest of the world. In addition, he mentioned the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), which has been strengthened through the Santiago de Chile and Havana Summits in addition to the San José de Costa Rica Summit, which will take place in January, 2015.

This situation, he added, represents a new regionalism in which Latin America optimistically incorporates itself, and it is on the basis of this experience that new ways to establish a map for the re-founding of the United Nations emerge.

Maduro reiterated Venezuela’s rejection of the U.S. blockade imposed on Cuba, describing it as a "Cold War anachronism."

He also asked, "Barack Obama, when will the time come for you to go down in history and lift once and for all the criminal economic blockade and persecution against our sister nation of Cuba."

In addition, he commented on other causes which are gaining increased international support, such as that of the Argentine government’s fight against the onslaught of predatory hedge funds. Maduro stated that his country is focusing on the post 2015 agenda and fulfilling the Millennium Development Goals. "I can tell you that in our homeland of Venezuela, in the Bolivarian Venezuela of our Comandante Hugo Chávez, following great efforts, practically all the millennium development goals have been met."

He highlighted the economic and social policy advances which have been consolidated since the beginning of the century despite the country facing "constant harassment, constant conspiracies by imperial forces and the forces allied to the U.S. empire, which have continually tried to undermine democracy."

The Venezuelan President also spoke of the problems currently affecting humanity, such as the Ebola epidemic afflicting Western Africa.

"If this world and our United Nations had a little more human rationality, instead of sending drones, missiles and bombs to destroy the people of Gaza or bomb the people of Iraq and Syria, we would be focusing on strengthening our efforts to tackle this genuine threat."

He also denounced acts of terrorism around the globe, in all their forms.

In regards to the situation in the Middle East, he stated that the sovereign governments of the region; the Islamic Republic of Iran; Iraq; Syria; Libya; Jordan; and Egypt must convene to establish a comprehensive, political, military, cultural, and communicational strategy, supported by the UN Security Council. "Anything else is insane, anything else is crazy."