U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Wednesday that the world is currently facing more violent conflicts than any time in over 70 years as two billion people worldwide are living in conflict-ridden areas.
The secretary general, speaking at a Peacebuilding Commission meeting, said the world was facing “the highest number of violent conflicts since 1945.”
“From Yemen to Syria, Myanmar and Sudan. From Haiti to the Sahel and on and on. And now the war in Ukraine — a catastrophe shaking the foundations of the international order, spilling across borders and causing skyrocketing food, fuel and fertilizer prices that spell disaster for developing countries,” Guterres said.
“As we meet today, one quarter of humanity lives in conflict-affected areas,” he added, estimating that this year alone, 274 million people would require humanitarian assistance.
The secretary-general also said an estimated 84 million people were “forcibly displaced because of conflict, violence and human rights violations” last year.
In his remarks, Guterres touted his proposed New Agenda for Peace which he said “places prevention and peacebuilding at the heart of our efforts” in addition to proposing $100 million in funding for the Peacebuilding Fund.
The U.N. leader’s comments and proposal come as Ukraine continues to endure a violent, full-scale military invasion from Russia, though Moscow has struggled to dominate in the way many expected.
Earlier this month, the U.N. reported that almost 6.5 million Ukrainians had been internally displaced amid the conflict in addition to the well over 3 million people who have fled the country and are living as refugees abroad.
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