Under Secretary‑General Miguel Ángel Moratinos, High Representative for the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, announced the launch of the United Nations Action Plan to enhance monitoring and response to antisemitism at a U.N. briefing, saying the plan is intended to strengthen coordinated action across the U.N. system.

Moratinos said the plan, developed under the leadership of the secretary‑general and the Alliance of Civilizations, builds on decades of U.N. work and is intended to make the organization's response to antisemitism “more coordinated and effective.” He described the document as focused on measures within the U.N. family rather than on endorsing external definitions or taking political positions.

The action plan is organized into six chapters plus one annex, Moratinos said, listing a secretary‑general foreword, a preface by his office, background on antisemitism, the normative framework and a final chapter with recommended actions for monitoring and response. He said chapter 5 provides detailed recommendations for enhancing U.N. monitoring and response.

Among the specific elements Moratinos highlighted were establishment of a U.N. monitoring and evaluation working group to assess the impact of policies and measures addressing antisemitism; initiatives to increase awareness and understanding of antisemitism among U.N. personnel; and efforts to mainstream the plan across U.N. policy, knowledge management and programming activities. He said his office will launch a series of dialogues to share good practices on countering bigotry, with at least one episode focused on antisemitism.

Asked whether the plan would require the U.N. to call out particular individuals, organizations or governments, Moratinos said the U.N. already condemns antisemitic acts and that the plan is primarily aimed at strengthening internal monitoring, coordination and capacity. “We will continue to speak out strongly against any act … of antisemitism,” he said, while emphasizing the plan’s internal, system‑wide focus.

On the question of definitions, Moratinos said the plan references existing work, including the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition, but that the United Nations will not formally endorse or adopt any single external definition. “We acknowledge what has been done,” he said, “but the U.N. is not going to adopt or endorse any definition — that is a matter for member states.”

Moratinos addressed concerns about protecting freedom of expression, saying the plan is not intended to politicize the issue and that criticism of a government is not, by itself, antisemitic. He added that the plan is designed to distinguish between legitimate criticism and statements or actions that amount to hostility against Jewish people.

He said implementation would begin immediately: his office has already been working with U.N. entities and envoys, and Moratinos said a special meeting to discuss implementation is planned in about 10 days. He described the plan as providing concrete recommendations — a “long list of action” in dedicated chapters — but did not give a fixed timetable for all deliverables. The plan is posted on the Alliance of Civilizations website, Moratinos said; the transcript provided a garbled URL and no precise web address was given in the briefing.

During a question‑and‑answer session, reporters representing outlets including US News & World Report, China Central Television, the Associated Press and i24news asked how the plan would treat protests, speech at U.N. Headquarters and whether the Israeli government had been consulted in drafting. Moratinos said his office had been in contact with the Israeli mission and Jewish representative organizations during preliminary phases but that the final draft was prepared based on a broader stocktaking to avoid undue influence by a single party.

The briefing concluded with Moratinos urging global action against antisemitism and quoting the secretary‑general’s forward to the plan: “No form of prejudice or hatred should find a home anywhere. We will not rest until they have been banished for good.”