The President of the Republic addressed journalists in the gardens of the United Nations (UN) headquarters in New York after delivering his speech at the 80th session of the UN General Assembly on the first day of the annual general debate among world leaders.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa noted that in Donald Trump’s meeting with UN Secretary-General António Guterres today, Trump expressed support for the organization and did not announce further financial cuts, despite the criticisms he had made earlier in the General Assembly.
For the head of state, this “means that one thing is the speech” of the American President, “but it has always been like this, in the first and second terms, he has a speech for the electorate, both internal and external, which is a very radical speech,” and “another thing is the practice.”
In other words, “one thing is the face value of what he says, another thing is the practice of what he does,” he emphasized.
Asked about his meeting with Donald Trump later today at the usual reception offered by the President of the United States to the heads of delegations participating in the UN General Assembly, he replied: “I will see how he reacts, maybe he will ask my opinion.”
“And, if so, I will say that he remains true to himself, that in fact, from a declaratory point of view, he is very televisual, this is very much his showbiz experience. Then, from a practical point of view, the reality is more complicated and involves being more lenient, even with the United Nations,” he added.
According to Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, this happens because Donald Trump “knows that resolving conflicts is not as simple as it seems in a declaratory statement” and “he is fully aware that he does not have enough weight to solve major conflicts alone.”
“I think the American President was very forceful in his vocal stance, because it has a significant impact, because it mobilizes similar electorates, for example in European countries, as well as in the United States. It’s a wave,” he commented.
The head of state reinforced his criticism of Trump regarding the resolution of conflicts, saying that “he did not resolve Ukraine or the Middle East, which are the most important” and that “they are being handled, in one way or another, by initiatives from various countries.”
In his opinion, “the recognition of the State of Palestine, by itself, but for what it signified,” is marking this session of the UN General Assembly, which was “massively on a certain side” on this issue, and “President Trump realized this.”
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa considered that “a G3 is emerging” where “the United States prefers to deal with Russia and China, although with apparent divergences,” while “China and Russia agree among themselves and then have to dialogue with the United States.”
But, in his analysis, “they do not escape a reality, which is the weight of the General Assembly,” and this body, which brings together all 193 member states of the organization, could be strengthened in terms of importance “if the Security Council continues to be blocked due to vetoes.”
The President of the Republic pointed out that “there are other countries with weight, India, Brazil, Japan, the major Arab countries, Saudi Arabia, or Muslim ones, Indonesia, which are not entirely aligned.”
“Therefore, there is a change in the world, but also a change in the functioning of the United Nations, which will have to do with the future secretary-general,” he anticipated.
Regarding Guterres’s succession, from 2027, he said that the process now “is more complex” and “the German president of the General Assembly will have a more active role.”
