UNGA President Baerbock Talks "Critical Moment" For Organization's Future

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Bloomberg Talks — UNGA President Baerbock Talks "Critical Moment" For Organization's Future

Date: July 20, 2026
Host: Bloomberg
Guest: Annalena Baerbock, President of the 80th Session, UN General Assembly

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Episode Overview

This episode features an in-depth conversation with Annalena Baerbock, President of the 80th UN General Assembly, at a pivotal time for the United Nations as it prepares to select its next Secretary General. The discussion centers on the significance of this decision, the push for gender equality in leadership, challenges around UN reforms, financial strains, and the broader relevance of the organization at a global crossroads.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Choosing the Next UN Secretary General

• Historic Opportunity for Female Leadership
  • For the first time, the majority of candidates are women (4 out of 6), prompting a discussion about gender representation at the highest level of the UN.
  • Notable Quote:

    "There has never been a female Secretary General in the history of the United Nations. So it's really a decisive moment and an important decision also by member states to decide which person represents 8 billion people best in these challenging global times."
    — Annalena Baerbock (01:23)

• Evolution in Selection Process
  • The process, historically opaque, is now more transparent. Candidates are engaging in public interviews and events, such as a live-streamed town hall, an attempt to bring the global public into the debate.
  • Memorable Observation:

    "Most of the people probably don't know that the Secretary General process is ongoing. But this will be also a power game... between the Security Council... But in the end, it is the 193 member states in the General assembly, representing 8 billion, who take the final decision."
    — Annalena Baerbock (02:53)

2. The Role of Security Council and General Assembly Power Dynamics

• Security Council Dominance
  • The P5 (US, Russia, China, France, UK) has outsized influence, but Baerbock stresses the shifting dynamics as the General Assembly asserts more agency, particularly on values like climate action and gender equality.
  • Key Assertion:

    "If there would be a proposal, for example, where a person would face a situation that he or she is not sure whether she will make the majority in the General assembly, then obviously everything changes. And this is unique about this process..."
    — Annalena Baerbock (04:37)

• Credibility and Representation
  • Baerbock underscores the critical question of the UN’s legitimacy if it fails to reflect its principles, especially regarding gender and regional representation.
  • Anecdote:
    Baerbock references the election of Kofi Annan and Africa’s insistence on regional rotation, drawing a parallel to today’s push for a female candidate. (05:18)

3. UN Financial Strains and Reform

• Budget Shortfalls and Payment Arrears
  • The US and China are cited as major powers in arrears to the UN, leading to a liquidity crisis and tough choices.
  • Critical Moment:

    "We are in a very critical moment. And this is why the current Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, has rang the alarm bell that we will face a liquidity crisis again."
    — Annalena Baerbock (06:36)

• Recent Rule Changes and Reform Efforts
  • Baerbock describes reforms addressing outdated financial rules, notably around spending and refunds, to keep operations running.
  • Leadership Message:

    "...under pressure, the vast majority of member states understand that the UN is the life insurance for most of the countries in the world. And under pressure, we can reform. But this will be the key new task for the next Secretary General..."
    — Annalena Baerbock (07:07)

  • She warns that non-payment by major countries could result in loss of voting rights in the Assembly.

4. The Meaning of UN Reform: Beyond Austerity

• Not Just Cost-Cutting
  • Baerbock strongly refutes the idea that reform means austerity, insisting it's about responsible leadership and ensuring the UN remains fit for purpose.
  • Memorable Quote:

    "This is about leadership and taking up the responsibility by those who believe that we need the United Nations. And I always say no single day would the world be better off without this United Nations."
    — Annalena Baerbock (08:04)

• Core Pillars Must Be Protected
  • She warns against reducing support for sustainable development as a budget cut, reminding listeners that peace, security, development, and human rights are foundational.
  • Foundational Reminder:

    "...without sustainable development, you would just enter the next war and crisis."
    — Annalena Baerbock (09:37)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Gender Representation

  "You cannot say, well, there was no competent woman out there in the world if you have 4 billion candidates."
  — Annalena Baerbock (05:03)

• On the Power of Public Attention and Social Media

  "...now, as we're having this town hall meeting... live streamed by Bloomberg, we will have the chance also that people hear about what's going on. Because frankly speaking, most of the people probably don't know that the Secretary General process is ongoing."
  — Annalena Baerbock (02:33)

• Reform Urgency

  "...it's a self-interest that we reform it because it was built 80 years ago and some of the mechanisms obviously do not work like 1947. So we have to change this..."
  — Annalena Baerbock (08:20)

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Important Timestamps

• 01:04 — Significance of the upcoming Secretary General selection, gender parity, and global challenges
• 02:21 — Representation of the world's population and the evolving transparency of the selection process
• 03:41 — Power dynamics between Security Council and General Assembly; precedent for regional and gender representation
• 06:34 — UN liquidity crisis, financial rule changes, and looming threats to operational capacity
• 08:02 — Rebutting the notion of austerity; emphasis on reform as responsible leadership

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Conclusion

This episode offers a frank and urgent look at the UN at a crossroads, as it navigates leadership succession, strives for gender equality, faces existential financial pressures, and seeks to reform itself without abandoning its foundational mission. President Baerbock calls for global engagement and candor in reform—reminding listeners of the UN's irreplaceable role, even as it confronts critical internal and external challenges.

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Transcript

[A]

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[B]

Bloomberg Audio Studios Podcasts Radio News I am here with Annalina Burbach, of course, the President of the 80th session of the UN General Assembly. As we speak right now, this week, we are expected to start to get those straw polls to potentially select the next Secretary General of the United Nations. Do we have any sense about the six candidates and what you as president, would like to see in terms of what their priorities should be over the next five years?

[C]

The next Secretary General will not only be the face of this unique multilateral institution, but it will also decide on whether the UN will play a relevant role on peace and security, but also on embracing the chances we have in an interconnected world about global governance structure. On AI, for example, on lifting millions out of poor poverty. And as you said, currently there are six candidates for women to men. So far, there has never been a female Secretary General in the history of the United Nations. So it's really a decisive moment and an important decision also by member states to decide which person represents 8 billion people best in these challenging global times.

[B]

Well, let's talk about those 8 billion people. Prior to the 2015, 2016 campaign. This was a relatively opaque process, the selection process that opened up a little bit about 10 years ago. And under your leadership as President of the 80th assembly, you have tried to make things a bit more transparent, having the candidates come out and give these interviews well in advance of the actual selection process. Are Those people, the 8 billion people out there, do they actually have a say in this? To some degree or another, they are

[C]

represented by their member states, by the governments, by the ambassadors here in New York. However, we also know that in the modern times, power lies also in communication around the world. So if there's now the saying out there, for example, that two years ago member states agreed by consensus that it should be this time really female candidates, because otherwise those 8 billion people, or at least 4 billion half of women and girls, would question if an institution built on human rights, on equality, was not capable of finding a woman. Again, this will have a totally different debate than it had 10 years ago when we didn't really have the power of social media. So now, as we're having this town hall meeting on Thursday, coming up live streamed by Bloomberg, we will have the chance also that people hear about what's going on. Because frankly speaking, most of the people probably don't know that the Secretary General process is ongoing. But this will be also a power game, frankly speaking speaking, between the Security Council, upon which recommendation a person will be nominated. But in the end, it is the 193 member states in the General assembly, representing 8 billion, who take the final decision.

[B]

But those five permanent members of the Security Council, which includes the U.S. obviously, as well as Russia, China, France and the UK, they do have an inordinate amount of power to be able to say, this is the person that we want. If they put someone on your desk who maybe you do not think is appropriate, what options would you have to

[C]

push back on that in these challenging times? In my personal view, it's always how you define power. Obviously, being a member of the security council, a P5 member, you would say, well, it's up on us to recommend somebody yet if you define power, that in the end, the General assembly has to agree. And if the General assembly. So the member states make very clear, it is hard for us, for example, to vote on a person who is denying climate change. If we just had a couple of weeks ago a joint resolution in the General assembly about the member states responsibility of fighting climate crisis, because it's one of the key drivers for more conflicts and crisis around the world. So it's a peace and security issue. Then power shifts, because if there would be a proposal, for example, where a person would face a situation that he or she is not sure whether she will make the majority in the General assembly, then obviously everything changes. And this is unique about this process because as you mentioned before, it was behind closed doors. There was no television reporting about it, there was no social media asking questions. So where does a person stand on peace and security or women rights, for example? But we have had also in the history a situation that, for example, when Kofi Annan was finally elected, the African state made very clear because it was their turn. If this is not an African person being proposed, we don't even take a vote on, back then it was him. So this time it could be also very clear that member states are saying, we agreed two years ago that we should nominate women. How would we explain back to our constituency afterwards? We could not find a woman. You cannot say, well, there was no competent woman out there in the world if you have 4 billion candidates. So this is also quite question about the credibility of the General Assembly. So also a signal to the Security Council if they could propose only a man or if they would decide, then okay, we propose a man and a woman, which never happened before, that there were two persons.

[B]

I am curious though. I mean, some of the members of the Permanent Security Council are also some of the biggest ones that are in arrears to the United Nations. You've had to cut the budget, you've had to adjust. The United States is at least several billion behind. China, last time I checked, had not made its payments for the year. Is there a sense here that this is a permanent cycle where we are going to see nations either not pay what they are obligated to or to delay those payments?

[C]

We are in a very critical moment. And this is why the current Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, has rang the alarm bell that we will face a liquidity crisis again. My philosophy is in every crisis is a chance. Because when we faced this situation that we could not pay for peacekeeping at all anymore. Beginning of July, member states came together. I invited all of them and said we have to change our financial rules. For example, we had this very frankly speaking, ridiculous rule that you have to pay back money which was never collected in the first place if you did not spend it. So if the US didn't pay, obviously the US could not, the UN could not spend it and we changed this rule. So we at the moment that under pressure, the vast majority of member states understand that the UN is the life insurance for most of the countries in the world. And under pressure, we can reform. But this will be the key new task for the next Secretary General to drive forward this reform. But also make clear to member states, especially the big P5, if you do not pay, you could even lose your voting rights in the General Assembly.

[B]

But some of the reform measures that have been in place right now have, I don't know, either intentionally or unintentionally been conflated with austerity?

[C]

Yes.

[B]

Is this an austerity move by your part and the parts of the other leaders, or is this sort of a temporary pullback, adjusting the finances until you get the other countries to pay up and pay on time?

[C]

Neither. This is about leadership and taking up the responsibility by those who believe that we need the United Nations. And I always say no single day would the world be better off without this United Nations. Besides all the shortcomings, because we just spoke, you came here by plane, you would not enter a plane. If there would not be the UN because it's also responsible for safety and aviation, we would not be possible to fly around the world. If it would not be the World Health Organization, having fought with member states on fighting Covid together. So at a moment where, as you said, there are certain actors who would really like to destroy this organization, it's a self interest that we reform it because it was built 80 years ago and some of the mechanisms obviously do not work like 1947. So we have to change this. For example, the issue, how many resolutions do we have? We have more than 40,000 mandates yearly in the UN. We have 27,000 meetings. So this part of the reform which I'm driving forward together with the Secretary General, this is what we need to protect the United Nations. On the other hand, we should not allow cynics to weaponize this unique reform which we need to destroy the house from inside out. And this is why for me, in the reform, it's so important to make clear that the yen was founded always on three peace and security, sustainable development and human rights. And to those who argue now we should do less on sustainable development, because this would be saving money. I would always say, well, this is not the foundation of the United nations, because the founders knew after the second World War, without sustainable development, you would just enter the next war in crisis.

[B]

Madam President, really appreciate you being here. We have to leave it there. Thank you very much.

[C]

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[B]

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[C]

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[B]

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[C]

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[B]

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