UN General Assembly
2020

And the pace has been so urgent and the pressures so intense that each national government — democracy or otherwise — has decided entirely understandably to put the interests of its domestic population first. We have seen borders spring up between friends and allies, sometimes without consultation. We have seen the disruption of global supply chains with cheque book wars on airport tarmacs as nation has vied with nation for a supply of PPE. And after nine months of fighting COVID-19, the very notion of the international community looks, frankly, pretty tattered. And we know that we simply can’t continue in this way. Unless we get our act together. Unless we unite and turn our fire against our common foe, we know that everyone will lose. The inevitable outcome would be to prolong this calamity and increase the risk of another. Now is the time — therefore, here at what I devoutly hope will be the first and last ever Zoom UNGA — for humanity to reach across borders and repair these ugly rifts.