Biden’s Farewell to a Tense United Nations: Finding Hope

For the fourth and final time, U.S. President Joe Biden stood before the assembled members of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) today and shared his vision of the world and the international role of the United States. As he did in each of his three previous UNGA speeches, he described the world as teetering at an “inflection point” in making critical decisions. This year, he spoke from his unique vantage point, not just as the U.S. president, but as a leader inspired by his more than fifty years of experience in making foreign policy. He touched on the major conflicts and challenges around the world, but his main message was to continue the fight for a better world. His wistful yet hopeful message was that “we are stronger than we think.”

First elected to public office in 1972, Biden served as a U.S. senator for more than thirty-six years, including as chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was part of the generation that retooled U.S. foreign policy after the end of both the Vietnam War and the Cold War. He also stepped in to revive U.S. relations with international bodies after the turbulent presidency of his isolationist predecessor and after the COVID-19 pandemic. He drew on his experience of the sweep of history to invoke the importance of reconciliation.

Rather than starting with a recitation of current issues, Biden called on a lesson from early in his career as the United States struggled to end its war in Vietnam. He stressed the importance of the capacity for rapprochement. He noted that he has learned during his long career that “things can get better,” citing examples such as the successful fight to end apartheid in South Africa. He urged leaders to “see the threats, to deal with the challenges, and to seize the opportunities.”

Biden used this breadth of historical precedent to highlight important actions in his presidency.  Understanding the importance of ending the United States’ war in Vietnam, he said, underpinned his commitment to ending the war in Afghanistan. Bringing up painful and politically charged memories of the chaotic last days of U.S. withdrawal from Kabul, he noted that the conflict in Afghanistan had replaced Vietnam as the United States’ longest war but that he had ended it.

‘The center has held’

He further commented “I have hope. I know there is a way forward.” His remarks to the world could easily be heard as a plea to his compatriots. Quoting and rejecting the grim descriptions of William Butler Yeats’ 1919 poem, in which “Things fall apart; the center cannot hold;” he came to the surprisingly upbeat conclusion that “the center has held.” He urged his fellow leaders to persevere to ensure that the forces holding society together succeed. Drawing on a familiar phrase, President Biden reminded the assembled delegates that the world is at “an inflection point” and that the choices made now will determine the future for decades to come. Given the deep political divides in around the world, including the United States, it could be argued that the inflection point has passed; the real question is whether societies will continue to move forward or turn back.

Biden believes that one of the great strengths of U.S. foreign policy, and one of the pillars of international order, is the U.S.-led system of alliances. As president, he provided strong support for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO); built trilateral cooperation among U.S. allies Japan and South Korea, and Japan, the Philippines, and the United States; as well as forged a deeper security partnership with Australia and the United Kingdom known as AUKUS. He also promoted further Indo-Pacific cooperation through the Quad (Australia, India, Japan, and the United States) and the Squad (Australia, Japan, the Philippines, and the United States).

Crisis and Opportunity

Indo-Pacific. In his speech, Biden talked about the need to uphold principles when dealing with the crises in the South China Sea and the importance of “maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan straits.” Yet, he also chose to mention an area of cooperation with China, the effort to stop the flow of synthetic narcotics.

Ukraine. With Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in his country’s seat in the chamber, President Biden proclaimed that Russian President “Putin’s war had failed” and Ukraine “is still free.” But Biden warned, “We cannot grow weary. We cannot look away.” His statement was met with applause, possibly because it focused on overarching values not pending choices.  Biden did not mention pressing issues such as Ukraine deploying donated weapons for offensive uses.

Middle East. The war in the Gaza Strip is the most dramatic new security challenge since Biden spoke at UNGA one year ago.  On the Middle East, he stressed that it was important not to “flinch from the horrors of October 7^.”  He expressed the horror of Hamas “slaughtering and massacring twelve hundred people, including forty-six Americans.”  He explained that he has met with the families of the hostages, and they are “going through hell.” He also remarked that “innocent citizens in Gaza were also going through hell.” 

He stressed that the United States and Qatar have put together a package that should be adopted to ease the suffering in Gaza and “to end this war.” Raising Israeli-Palestinian issues has been caustic in UN settings for decades, as states on all sides of the issues have used the UN as a stage for declarations rather than a workshop for peace. It was the UN Secretary-General who, in his UNGA remarks, called out states who act with impunity and disregard international humanitarian law.

Biden called for a two-state solution and mentioned the importance of a “state of their own” for Palestinians. He put solving the Israeli-Palestinian issues into a wider context reminding the audience of the importance of solving these challenges so that the world can focus on ensuring that Iran never obtains a nuclear weapon.

Sudan. On Sudan, he said “a bloody civil war unleashed one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.” He stated that the world needs to “stop arming the generals, speak with one voice and tell them… end this war now.” The U.S. has been a leading provider of humanitarian assistance there, though peace efforts continue to falter.

Haiti. He mentioned the UN-backed operation in Haiti and the contribution of Kenya to that mission.  However, this is not yet a formal peacekeeping operation.

President Biden noted the U.S. support for the expansion of the Security Council as recently outlined by U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield (at an event at the Council on Foreign Relations).

For millions of people, the United Nations is not about security, but about improving human well-being. People look to the United Nations as the mechanism to help realize the Sustainable Development Goals, combat climate change, and improve public health. Many leaders during UNGA week are expected to highlight the shortfalls between pledges and commitments.  In his remarks to the General Assembly, Secretary-General António Guterres stated that “of the world’s poorest seventy-five countries, one-third are worse off today than they were five years ago.” He commented the recently signed Summit of the Future “is a first step, but we have a long way to go.”

U.S. Support of the United Nations

Implicitly recognizing the United States’ funding shortfalls in the past, President Biden noted that Washington is finally on track to meet its commitments on financing measures to mitigate climate change. He also noted that the United States rejoined the World Health Organization, donated COVID-19 vaccines, and is supporting the fight against the resurging spread of mpox, and the audience responded with applause.

He mentioned the first General Assembly resolution on artificial intelligence (AI) and asked how the international community can govern AI to ensure that AI respects human dignity, but he did not delve into the competing interests involved in this dynamic new technology.

The defining moment of his speech came when the president connected his years of experience in international affairs with a topic close to his heart: the defense of democracy. He noted that a quarter of humanity will vote in elections this year. In a poignant and powerful statement, the president who voluntarily gave up a run for a second term, looked to the assembled audience and said, “some things are more important than staying in power.” To have the most powerful president on the planet make this point fundamental to the nature of democracy reminds us of the uses of such speeches.  

In a notable and eloquent shift, U.S. presidents often wrap up addresses by requesting that God protect their own country, but he concluded his speech with “May God protect all those who seek peace.”