Mikhail Gorbachev:

Today we can say that we have a world political crisis. Generally, the world is even more dangerous than the world of the mid-1980s. And the question is: What are we supposed to do? And, generally, what kind of world do we need?

We will not be able to achieve anything unless there is a sea change in the attitudes of politicians, who neglect common human interests and do not put them at the top of their agendas. One common problem is that we politicians emphasize our national interests, since we have another election ahead of us and this is our greatest concern.

Today our problems are global, and they can be addressed only through pooling our efforts. Recommendations of think-tanks and pressure from non-governmental organizations should be a basis for new politics.

The conference has fulfilled its task of productive brainstorming about the issues, revealing the scope of the endeavor, and it has laid a strong foundation for our continued efforts to build a new world order. We need to deepen our perception of the reality of today’s world and identify developing trends based on those realities. We should take an evolutionary approach to building the new political architecture. This means reforming existing organizations and adapting them to the challenges of the 21st century global world, while eliminating outdated organizations and methods. I want to illustrate this through the example of organizations like the United Nations (UN) and the World Trade Organization (WTO). We just had a meeting with the press, who asked: Is it time to eliminate the United Nations? That question floats around mostly when someone wants to get rid of international law, international institutions, the UN Security Council, and start acting without taking anyone else into account. I think everyone is aware of such ideas, and we will not dwell on them further. Need for an Economic Security Council at the United Nations There are defects in the UN structure. A very serious one is the structure of the Security Council, which does not reflect new realities. The UN is not sufficiently effective in the social and economic spheres. Many problems are rooted here, including the problems of security, stability and democracy.

For example, political scientists are attempting to provide convincing explanations for the roll-back we are witnessing in about one hundred or more countries, where big democratic changes took place in the late 20th century. Several dictators and authoritarian regimes left the world stage then; but now we see a roll-back of those processes, and authoritarian-minded politicians are again popular. We see it even here, in Europe. At the most recent congress of political scientists in Cape Town, South Africa, its participants (particularly those representing the developing countries) were clearly saying that people were unhappy with the fact that hopes for democracy proved unwarranted. They are ready to support anyone who proposes an effective social and economic program.

Some argue that the most important thing is freedom and political rights. Others try to prove that it is important to create social and economic preconditions for a normal life, worthy of a human being. In fact, both are important and need one another to function successfully.

All our efforts and projects will not be worth a penny if we do not consider that the number of poor people is increasing and the gap between rich and poor is growing. Today, half of the world’s population lives on a dollar or two a day, while well-off people engage in lengthy discussions and seem not to care much about the fate of those less fortunate.

We must pay attention to this issue, since this is potentially a delayed-action bomb. What were the origins of the Porto Alegre protest movement? At first, they wanted to portray their protest as simply a variety of almost rioting forces. Now these same forces are engaged in dialogue. We can no longer avoid addressing these urgent issues. I would probably put establishing a new organization for social and economic concerns at center stage of the new world order.

Mr. Stephane Hessel [Ambassador, France] was talking about the dangers lying within the current global financial system. Today, any country can be brought to its knees. You remember how Indonesia was praised and its experience extolled, but the country was bogged down in short loans. At the time it was enough to push a button or two, and within 24 hours Indonesia turned from a prosperous country into a backward one. The value of the national currency decreased three times.

When issues like that are not addressed, a vacuum develops. And G-8 and other organizations try to fill it. However, these organizations are like clubs, geared to the interests of their own members. For sure, they alleviate burning problems sometimes and raise billions. However, they do not operate as a system for the common good. Who authorized them to take up the functions irrelevant to their missions? G-8 members feel the lack of their legitimacy and therefore have recently invited China, India, Brazil, South Africa, and Mexico to their meetings. Life itself is forcing them to extend their representation. But still it is a club with invited guests. The danger is that it becomes an alternative to the United Nations. When they agree upon a decision there which is in conflict with the interests of the entire global community, there is a problem. And the UN is really the only legitimate universal international organization. That is why, in my view, an Economic Security Council is needed.

As for the World Trade Organization, people often ask: Can the organization created to achieve a narrow-scope objective of liberalizing the global trade meet the demand of today’s world? I think history has shown that the WTO can adapt to new objectives and the inclusion of new countries like China and Brazil. If we use such an approach, then we will be able to adapt these organizations instead of eliminating them. Adaptation is possible and may be the main direction for us to think about in moving toward a new world architecture..