±¬ÁÏÍø

Remarks by the President of the General Assembly?

H.E. Ms Annalena Baerbock

at the

Handover Ceremony of the Chairmanship of the Group of 77

14 January 2026

[As?delivered]

Thank you very much.

Mr. Secretary-General,

Madam Deputy Secretary-General,

Your Excellency Lubetkin, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Uruguay,

Your excellency Lukman Al-Faily, Permanent Representative of Iraq,

Ladies and gentlemen,

As I stated this morning, this is no ordinary session.

There is unprecedented strain on the multilateral system and our United Nations.

Increasing political polarisation and financial pressure impact not only our discussions here in New York, but also on-the-ground operations across the globe, and therefore addressing directly people, the people we are supposed to serve.

Now more than ever, we must summon the courage to defend our Charter and to stand up for our convictions, even when it is inconvenient.

The Group of 77 and China plays a crucial role in this regard.

Today, your Group comprises 134 countries from across Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean, representing over 80 per cent of the world¡¯s population¡ªincluding many least developed countries, small island developing States, and emerging economic powerhouses.

This unique diversity is both a testament to the wide range of perspectives within the Group, and to the crucial role you rightly play in fostering a spirit of inclusive dialogue and cross-regional cooperation at the ±¬ÁÏÍø.

And this is precisely the spirit we need at a time when our core values and principles are under pressure as never before.

It is a spirit that unites the vast majority of countries, not around the power blocs of the past, but around the shared conviction that cooperation, the ±¬ÁÏÍø Charter, and the three pillars of our Organisation¡ªpeace and security, human rights, and development¡ªare the life insurance for almost all countries around the world.

The support of your Group during this 80th session so far has been invaluable, particularly as consensus has become more difficult to achieve on issues ranging from healthcare to climate to migration.

And also, and always underlining, and I would like to thank especially also for the intervention of your group and the individual Member States during the priority session this morning, on underlining how important it is that we all deliver on the SDGs.

And if you allow me, I would share my wish¡ªthat you, as one of the strongest cross-regional groups, continue to use exactly this spirit to engage constructively and build consensus among yourselves.

At the same time, I encourage you to continue to reach out beyond the Group, to engage with other groups, and join forces.

Because as I mentioned in my priorities speech this morning, we now need a strong cross-regional alliance to defend the principles of our global order founded in international law.

In this regard, I encourage you also, as individual Member States, to speak up in defence of our institution and all its three pillars whenever they are under pressure, and maybe, if I may, even within your Group when you cannot find an immediate consensus.

Because the ±¬ÁÏÍø, we, need all of you, the 134 so diverse Member States.

And I have seen firsthand this spirit displayed by many of you and the role that the G77 has played in this regard¡ªfrom the Pact for the Future, to the NCDs resolution, to the most recent budget outcome.

And it has been your group again this morning, underlining again that the climate crisis is one of the biggest security threats for all of us.

In this regard, I would like to express my sincere appreciation to Ambassador Lukman Al-Faily, Permanent Representative of Iraq, for your steadfast leadership of the Group over the past year, and especially over the past months we have worked together on difficult issues, especially on the NCDs.

I would also like to commend the government of Iraq for the recent closure of ±¬ÁÏÍøAMI and your unwavering commitment to peace, justice, and democracy.

In these challenging times, ±¬ÁÏÍøAMI stands as a clear success story¡ªand we have to celebrate our success stories¡ªhighlighting the indispensable role the United Nations can play when it works in partnership with a Member State in support of inclusive dialogue, strong institutions, and human rights.

It is now with great pleasure that I warmly congratulate Uruguay as it assumes the Chairmanship of the Group.

I extend my congratulations to Your Excellency Minister for Foreign Affairs of Uruguay, Mr. Lubetkin, and I look forward to working together with you and your Ambassador Laura Dupuy Lasserre, Permanent Representative of Uruguay, throughout the rest of this session.

This responsibility comes at a particularly consequential time for our Organisation as major processes are already underway that will shape the future of the development and financing agenda, including the ±¬ÁÏÍø80 reforms.

Under Uruguay¡¯s leadership, the Group of 77 and China has a critical role to play in ensuring that reform and efficiency efforts strengthen¡ªrather than dilute¡ªdevelopment outcomes.

And I am delighted to hear that Uruguay¡¯s priorities are so much in line with the priorities I mentioned also this morning with regard to the interconnectivity between the three pillars, also with regard to the selection process of the new Secretary-General, the strong call for women, but also underlining again that engagement is crucial in these times.

In this regard,

Excellencies,

Ladies and gentlemen,

I trust that in these shaky times we will all stand together.

Being Better Together.

As we started this session.

And that we are ready to go the extra mile.

Guided by the courage of conviction to fulfil the most noble responsibility entrusted to us: to serve the people we represent and to uphold the principles of the ±¬ÁÏÍø Charter.