Global Power Gaps Exposed as Leaders Shun Accountability at UN and Beyond

In his farewell address to the UN General Assembly, António Guterres delivered a stark diagnosis of war, the sidelining of international law and a loss of trust, underscoring that power without accountability undermines democracy. Major leaders such as Xi Jinping, India’s prime minister and South Africa’s president were absent, while the United States withdrew from several UN agencies and cut funding. Donald Trump seized the moment to attack the UN and the International Criminal Court, then escalated a trade war with Canada after signing a security agreement with Denmark and Nuuk.

Mark Carney, speaking to the European Parliament, urged the formation of a medium-power alliance to protect Europe’s autonomy in chips, data and AI. He warned that without reliable partners, Europe will always negotiate from a weak position. The rise of far-right forces in Germany, exemplified by AfD victories in Saxónia-Anhalt and Mecklemburgo-Pomerânia Ocidental, illustrates the broader erosion of democratic legitimacy. In Portugal, the prime minister announced pension and tax relief but refused questions, prompting the journalists’ union to call for a boycott of such unanswerable briefings.