Erdogan: UN unable to cope with modern challenges

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called for a reform of the United Nations, stating that in his view, the organization is incapable of dealing with modern-day challenges.

According to Report, he made these remarks to journalists in Istanbul before departing for New York to attend the 80th session of the UN General Assembly.

"We see that the current structure of the UN, which reflects the conditions of 80 years ago, is insufficient to fulfill its modern-day responsibilities. There is no justification for leaving the resolution of humanitarian crises to the discretion of countries that hold veto power in the Security Council. We first raised this issue 12 years ago from the UN rostrum, stating that the world is bigger than five (permanent members of the UN Security Council). Over the years, the fairness of our assessment has been repeatedly confirmed. Even at the level of the Secretary-General, the urgent need for UN reform has begun to be openly expressed," Erdogan stated.

He noted that Türkiye has always supported efforts to reform the UN and will continue to do so.

"At the General Assembly, I will reiterate our position, which reflects the conscience of humanity and contributes to solving these problems. In my speech, I will especially highlight the humanitarian catastrophe and atrocities in the Gaza Strip. We will also touch upon Türkiye"s efforts to establish stability in the region and its contributions to maintaining international peace," the Turkish leader said.

Erdogan once again expressed support for Damascus and announced that he would meet with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani at the Turkish House in the US on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.