The United Nations:
A history of success and failure
The world is less peaceful than it was a decade ago. Economic instability is on the rise and a global recession is in the offing. The process of post-cold War democratisation is now running in reverse across the globe. Climate change is reaping devastating impacts. Conflicts in Kashmir, Syria, South Sudan, Yemen, and Afghanistan continue to rage; while new conflicts are bubbling to the surface.
Yet while global problems continue to mount, the problemsolving capacity of our politics continues to decline. Generally, national governments appear to lack the fortitude to embrace imaginative and far-reaching solutions. Multilateralism – the idea of governments working cooperatively – has stalled.