UN General Assembly president Baerbock lays out priorities: UN reform, Security Council debate and the next secretary‑general

Annalena Baerbock, president of the 80th session of the UN General Assembly, told the podcast Awake at Night that her brief, focused agenda is driven by what she called the need to keep the United Nations "not only alive, but to make it stronger." She said the session’s top priorities are institutional reform, the process to select the next secretary‑general and representing 193 member states equally.

"The most important task for every high ranking actor here is, to keep the United Nations not only alive, but to make it stronger by reforms," Baerbock said, calling the organization "under heavy pressure financially and politically." She added that the selection of the new secretary‑general is a central, time‑sensitive responsibility for the year ahead.

Why it matters: Baerbock argued the choices made this year—whom to invite, how to set agendas, and who leads the UN—will shape the organization’s capacity to respond to conflicts, humanitarian crises and new global challenges such as artificial intelligence and information disorders. "The selection process will tell a lot about the United Nations in the year 2025," she said.

On the Security Council, Baerbock described reform as a long‑running intergovernmental negotiation. She said the process (often referred to in UN debate as intergovernmental negotiations or IGN) has been active for more than 15 years and that meaningful amendment requires agreement from Security Council members. "We have not succeeded… the Security Council is being blocked and paralyzed," she said, adding that keeping the debate alive matters because it "defines the image of the United Nations around the world."

Baerbock also framed agenda choices as political decisions about who the UN represents. She said she has made deliberate decisions about invitations to high‑level meetings—asking whether survivors, women and children should be included—because those choices determine whose voices are heard and can influence outcomes.

Context and background: Baerbock emphasized her connection to the UN Charter and to public international law, noting she took her oath on the original Charter and sees it as a foundational political and legal compromise that underpins the assembly's authority.

What’s next: Baerbock said the coming months will include a high level of diplomatic activity and public debate over candidate profiles for the next secretary‑general. She posed the question publicly whether the UN might select its first female secretary‑general, and said such a decision would carry a broader message about the institution’s credibility.