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The world has just experienced a year of enormous geopolitical, economic, and environmental change, and the desire for peace and stability is now greater than ever.

Peace built on trust and hope

In a message sent on December 29, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres recalled the enormous suffering, violence, and climate chaos that humanity has had to endure in the past year. He said humanity is in pain and our planet is in peril.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres (Photo: Andrea Renault/AFP)

He called on countries and communities to stop blaming each other, and said, “2024 must be a year for rebuilding trust and restoring hope. We must come together across divides to find shared solutions for climate action, for economic opportunity, and a fairer global financial system that delivers for all. Together we must stand up against the discrimination and hatred that are poisoning relations between countries and communities.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin underscored love and family traditional values as the firm foundation for larger social relations and factors to create a more peaceful world.

“In any age, celebrating New Year means lighting up hope with sincere aspirations to make our beloved people happy. 2024 has been declared the Year of the Family in our country, and a real family is, of course, where children grow up, where attention, warmth, and care for parents, and love and respect for each other, prevail. It is precisely from this kinship of all generations that loyalty to one's Fatherland is born and nurtured,” Putin said.

Affirming that trust is the pillar of relationships, US President Joe Biden and Chinese President, Xi Jinping, exchanged congratulatory messages on the first day of the New Year, saying that the 45^th anniversary of the establishment of US-China diplomatic relations this year is an opportunity for the two countries to strengthen trust, thereby responsibly managing bilateral relationship for the stability and development of each country as well as the region and the world.

A year of decisive choices

The world enters the New Year facing great challenges. Prolonged conflicts and an unfavorable global economic outlook are pressuring many countries and regions, where many major political events will take place this year.

In the next few weeks the heads of the EU countries will discuss ways to break the current deadlock over long-term economic and military support for Ukraine. Pressure to act quickly is weighing on EU leaders because the European Parliament elections scheduled for June may create political uncertainty.

French President Emmanuel Macron said this year will be a year of important decisions for Europe. “2024 will be a year of decisive choices. We will have to make the choice of a stronger, more sovereign Europe, a Europe that works for peace in the Middle East and on our own continent.”

Pope Francis said that 2024 will be the year when humanity must decisively say “No” to war. In his speech "Urbi et Orbi" (To the City and to the World) delivered on December 26, Pope Francis said that Jesus came to the world in the form of a child. All those little ones whose childhood has been devastated by war are the little Jesuses of today. He called on countries to revive trust in each other and have the courage to say “No” to war and weaponry.

To say ‘no’ to war means saying ‘no’ to weaponry. The human heart is weak and impulsive. If we find instruments of death in our hands, sooner or later we will use them. And how can we even speak of peace when arms production, sales, and trade are on the rise?” said Pope Francis.

This year besides resolving pending challenges of 2023, humanity will have to make clear choices about what kind of future world they want to build. The UN Summit of the Future, next September 22 and 23, will design a Pact for the Future.