French envoy: Discord highest since Cold War

Dissension and conflict are at their highest levels since the Cold War and cooperation among nations has become more difficult in a world that is more interdependent than ever, France’s top diplomat said Monday as global leaders gathered at the United Nations. French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told a news conference that heads of state and government were coming together for their annual meeting at the General Assembly at “a critical moment” that is witnessing “a worrying degradation of the international environment.”

What is worse, he said, is that some countries are increasingly questioning the role of working together, “and with a temptation of withdrawal out of fear or selfishness.” He gave no examples but appeared to be pointing to growing nationalism in the United States and some European countries. The ministerial session started yesterday with a state of the world speech by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. US President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron, both making their debuts at the global gathering, will address the 193member world body soon after.

Le Drian cited the increasing number of global crises: fighting terrorism; resolving conflicts from the Middle East to Africa; tackling North Korea’s escalating nuclear program; and addressing the flight of more than 400,000 Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar to Bangladesh. France’s priority is to work on concrete solutions because these crises affect European security and “jeopardize the international order,” he said. — AP