UN General Assembly President Calls for Reform, Defends Women's Rights, and Warns of Institutional Pressure

Baerbock Outlines Secretary-General Selection Process, Reacts to Historic CSW Vote, and Urges Member States to Pay Their Dues

General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock addressed UN correspondents on Friday, delivering a wide-ranging update on three fronts: the upcoming selection process for the next Secretary-General, the outcome of the 70th session of the Commission on the Status of Women, and the accelerating effort to reform the United Nations itself.

Her remarks came at a moment she described as one of acute institutional pressure — with the UN Charter under strain, the Security Council repeatedly deadlocked, and the organization facing a potential financial shutdown as soon as June.

Baerbock opened by framing the 70th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70) as both a milestone and a warning sign.

"All around the world we can see women's rights are the benchmark for the strength, freedom, and economic development of societies," she said. "Gender equality has never been more supported globally than today. But at the same time we have never seen such organized attempts to roll back these successes."

She grounded her argument in economics, citing figures from the McKenzie Global Institute: closing the global gender pay gap would increase worldwide productivity and GDP by $12 trillion; closing the digital divide between men and women could grow the world economy by over $100 trillion by 2050 — an amount equivalent to the combined GDP of the United States and China; and ensuring equal work opportunities for women, including access to childcare, could boost global GDP by an additional $28 trillion, or 26%.

"Women's rights are in the interest of all," she said flatly.

When asked about the first-ever vote on a CSW outcome document, Baerbock was careful to reframe what many had described as a diplomatic failure.

"We never had a vote before, but we have also seen before that there hasn't been an outcome document," she said. "The vast majority was not working hand in hand with those who want to see a backlash."

She argued the vote was, in a perverse way, a demonstration of strength — proof that most member states are committed to advancing gender equality even as a minority attempts to reverse it. "Women are so strongly empowered everywhere," she added. "The topics we had in the past about cultural relativism — that maybe in some regions women's lives are not as important — this is not there anymore."

On the situation of women in Iran, Baerbock was direct: "As a woman and as PGA standing up for human rights — we stand at your side." She cited the existing UN Human Rights Council fact-finding mission on Iran and condemned both the killing of protesters and what she described as systematic legislative attacks on women under the Taliban in Afghanistan.

"In Afghanistan, women are denied every normal human right we are all enjoying. They are imprisoned in their own homes. And unfortunately we have not spoken about that intensively enough."

On Gaza, she pushed back against attempts to pit different crises against one another. "Human rights and women's rights are indivisible," she said. "If we start to divide who is suffering more against ethnic groups — this just plays into the hands of those trying to divide this big solidarity."

She also addressed a question about a strike on a girls' school in Iran that killed more than 160 civilians, calling it "unacceptable" and demanding accountability. "Civilians and civilian infrastructure must be protected at all times. There is clear international humanitarian law about responsibilities in times of war. Any violation cannot remain without consequences."

On the race to succeed António Guterres as UN Secretary-General, Baerbock confirmed that five nominations have been received to date:

• Rafael Grossi of Argentina, nominated by Argentina in November

• Michelle Bachelet of Chile, nominated by Chile, Brazil, and Mexico in February

• Macky Sall, former president of Senegal, nominated by Burundi in early March

• Rebecca Greenspan of Costa Rica, nominated by Costa Rica in March

• Virginia Gamba of Argentina, nominated by the Maldives in March

She noted that the revitalization resolution adopted by all 193 member states contains a strong, consensus call for the nomination of women — though she was careful to describe her own role as managing the process rather than expressing a personal preference.

"My role is to lead this process based on the resolution and based on the strong call for the representation of this institution and its principles," she said.

The interactive dialogues — in which each candidate will present a vision statement, answer questions from member states, and engage with civil society — are scheduled for the week of April 20th. Each candidate will receive a three-hour session, divided between personal vision and management skills in the first half, and the three

UN pillars — peace and security, sustainable development, and human rights — in the second.

Baerbock encouraged media to cover the process extensively and noted that sessions will be available for livestreaming to parliaments and regional constituencies around the world. Nominations must be submitted by April 1st to allow for logistical planning.

Asked whether she had spoken specifically with IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi about whether he intends to step down from his current post before participating — a requirement flagged in the resolution — she declined to address individual candidates, emphasizing the need for a "transparent, neutral, and fair process" in which every candidate has an equal opportunity.

Baerbock dedicated significant time to the ongoing UN80 reform process, which she described as more urgent, not less, given the institution's current difficulties.

"Because the times are so challenging and this institution is so much under pressure, we need even more and very serious debate about how to modernize it," she said.

The reform effort is organized around three workstreams:

Workstream 1 — Finance. The UN faces a potential liquidity crisis and possible shutdown as early as June or July if member states do not pay their contributions. A budget was successfully passed at the end of 2025, but many states remain in arrears. Baerbock also renewed a push to change the rule requiring the UN to reimburse unspent funds to member states — a provision she called "a vicious circle" that forces the organization to return money it never actually received, deepening cuts further.

Workstream 2 — General Assembly operations. Co-chairs from Jamaica and New Zealand have been conducting near-daily consultations with member states and are expected to publish a final report by March 31st. Proposals under discussion include sunset clauses for redundant resolutions, biennial rather than annual cycles for some resolutions, caps on the number of high-level meetings in September, and speaking time limitations to reduce translation and room costs.

Workstream 3 — UN agencies and field operations. This workstream addresses how UN agencies coordinate on the ground, including proposals for mergers — notably between UN Women and UNFPA — and broader questions about duplications across the humanitarian system.

"Don't book too long a summer holiday," Baerbock told reporters with a smile, "because I can promise you — inside this building, we will have many, many reform steps to take."

Throughout the briefing, Baerbock returned to what she called her "central priority" for the 80th session: defending the UN Charter.

She pointed to the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and a "dangerous military escalation" involving Iran, the United States, and Israel as evidence that the principles enshrined in the charter — including the prohibition on the use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state — are under active threat.

"International law was not written only for the good times, but especially for the challenging situations," she said. "If we question this institution or international law every time the Security Council faces a veto, we lose the principles of this institution — and with it, the life insurance for all countries around the world."

She did not name specific actors but made clear that the moment demands resolve rather than accommodation.

Annalena Baerbock is the President of the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly. This article is adapted from her press briefing at UN Headquarters in New York.

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