Ramaphosa's UN Address: Palestine, Debt, and Security Council Reform

Call for Global Justice

• 💡 President Ramaphosa advocated for a peaceful Palestinian state alongside Israel, urging powerful nations to make a two-state solution viable and implementable.
• 🌍 He also reaffirmed the right to self-determination for the people of Western Sahara.

Addressing Economic Disparities

• 💸 Many developing economies, especially in Africa and the Global South, are burdened by debt, spending more on debt servicing than health and education.
• 📈 Geopolitical shocks and trade policy volatility are destabilizing the global economy and jeopardizing development finance.
• ⚠️ Ramaphosa condemned the use of trade as a weapon, specifically calling for the lifting of the economic embargo against Cuba due to its detrimental impact.

Prioritizing Development Over Conflict

• ⚔️ Global military expenditure has reached historic highs, while the world falls behind on core development promises.
• 🌱 He emphasized building social infrastructure and fighting poverty instead of engaging in wars that cause death and destruction.

Reforming the UN Security Council

• 🏛️ The UN Security Council must be accountable, representative, democratic, and effective in its mandate.
• 🌍 Ramaphosa highlighted the injustice of Africa (1.4 billion people) and South America not being represented in the Security Council, deeming it unacceptable.
• ✅ He demanded representation for these continents to ensure a more equitable global governance structure.