Deandrea Hamilton| Editor
New York, 25 June 2025 – Speaking before the General Assembly, UN Secretary-General António Guterres marked the 20th anniversary of the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) by calling for renewed global commitment to prevent atrocity crimes.
Adopted at the 2005 World Summit, the R2P principle affirms that sovereignty entails a responsibility: the duty of states to shield their populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity. When states fail, the international community has a duty to act.
Today, the Secretary-General said, that commitment faces severe tests. “We are witnessing the highest number of armed conflicts since the Second World War,” he noted, citing identity-based violence, impunity, and violations of international law as worsening global threats. Emerging challenges—including new technologies and advanced weaponry—require adaptable responses.
The Secretary-General presented his seventeenth report on R2P, highlighting support among Member States and affected communities alike. The report calls for early warning systems, strengthened national and regional prevention mechanisms, and integrated atrocity prevention across UN operations—from humanitarian work to peacekeeping.
He emphasized that R2P is not merely a principle but a moral imperative, urging consistent, timely, and collective international action.
The commemoration, he said, is a call to translate commitment into protection: “Civilians are paying the highest price. We must do better—because protecting people is the heart of our shared humanity.”
