Tuesday, Annalena Baerbock of Germany will become the first European woman to occupy the post and only the fifth president of the history of the assembly.
On the eve of the inauguration of Baerbock, UN News spoke with one of his predecessors. María Fernanda Espinosa, former Minister of Defense and Foreign Affairs of the Ecuador, led the 2018 to 2019 assembly as the first woman in Latin America and the Caribbean to do so.
Hard work and qualified diplomacy
Espinosa describes The General Assembly As a “laboratory of international law”, noting that the role of the president requires “hard work, good diplomacy and the ability to carry out fair negotiations”.
The last woman to preside over the assembly said that she sees Annalena Baerbock all the qualities necessary for a “brilliant performance” as the next president. She stressed that the German chief took office at a time of “deep structural change within the institution, partly linked to financial challenges”.
Espinosa thinks that Baerbock will play an “absolutely central” role in the implementation of reforms within the framework of the UN80 process, as well as the advanced commitments linked to The Pact for the futureadopted in 2024.
For Espinosa, the own story of the UN proves that it is “an irreplaceable organization, a humanity cannot happen – but which must nevertheless be reinvented”.
Annalena Baerbock, elected president of the eightieth session of the United Nations General Assembly, is aimed at journalists after her election.
“Why not a woman as secretary general?”
While welcoming the election of the fifth president of the Assembly in New York, Espinosa said that this restructuring also offered the opportunity to rethink leadership styles and finally consider a woman for the post of secretary general. The next appointment is expected in 2026.
“The real question is: why not?” She asked, stressing that a woman could bring qualities such as “strong management and a construction of bridges”. She added that a woman secretary general would also represent an act of “historic justice”, after 80 years of male leadership at the helm of the UN.
The former Ecuadorian diplomat recognized one of the largest challenges in the United Nations: the gap between the resolutions adopted in the General Assembly and their translation in national policies and regulations. That, she said, prevents multilateral decisions from producing tangible improvements in people’s lives.
To remedy this, she called for a “more inclusive and network multilateralism”, in which citizens are informed, committed and capable of monitoring international decisions taken.
Build a consensus behind the scenes
Espinosa stressed that “most of the presidency works are taking place behind the scenes”, dealing with divisions and forging consensus.
She noted that the new president will be more and more confronted with the responsibilities related to peace and security, as well as sustainable development.
Espinosa recalled that the very first resolution adopted by the General Assembly concerned the discovery of atomic energy, stressing the need to adapt to a new force which could be exploited for peaceful purposes, but also “terrible effects”.
She underlined the moments of definition of her own presidency, including the difficult negotiations which led to the adoption of the first Global compact for migration in 2018.
The diplomat also expressed his pride in internal advances, such as the decision to eliminate single -use plastics in the UN, recognizing the damage they cause to human health and ecosystems.
Originally published at Almouwatin.com
