United Nations Day, celebrated each year on October 24, commemorates the entry into force of the United Nations Charter in 1945 – a document born out of the ruins of World War II with the solemn promise “to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war.” Marking eighty years in 2025, this day stands as both a celebration and a moment of reckoning. The world, burdened by conflicts in Gaza (amidst a ceasefire over 70,000 dead bodies), with Ukraine, Sudan, and Myanmar, and troubled by global polarization, climate catastrophe, and humanitarian crises, faces a critical question.

Has the UN lived up to its founding ideals of peace, security, and cooperation among nations? When established in 1945 by 51 nations, the UN’s purpose was to provide machinery for collective action to prevent conflict, promote human rights, and uplift global living conditions through cooperation rather than competition. United Nations Day, formally recognized in 1948 and later declared an international holiday in 1971, honours the institution’s mission – ‘to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, and foster social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom’. As the UN turns eighty this year, celebrations around the world – from educational panels to cultural exhibitions – reaffirm its ideals. Yet, behind these festivities lies a growing recognition that the UN’s capacity to act meaningfully has been weakened by geopolitical divisions and funding crises.

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Reports indicate that the United Nations system in 2025 faces one of its most severe crises in decades. According to the ‘International Crisis Group’, the return of President Donald Trump to the U.S. presidency in January 2025 has had far-reaching implications for multilateralism. If reports are to be believed, the United States, the UN’s largest single donor, has significantly reduced its funding across agencies, including the World Food Programme and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, both of which rely........

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