Open Letter to Heads of State at the United Nations General Assembly: You Must Act To Preserve World Peace!

Sept. 20, 2023—The following open letter was drafted by Helga Zepp-LaRouche for immediate circulation in New York City at the United Nations, and to the rest of the world. It will be circulated as a leaflet by the Schiller Institute, with Zepp-LaRouche’s “Ten Principles” on the back of the letter.

Open Letter to Heads of State at the United Nations General Assembly—You Must Act To Preserve World Peace!

by Helga Zepp-LaRouche, founder of the Schiller Institute

Who can deny that the protection of World Peace is the most important obligation of governments? Two World Wars in the 20th century, and the dropping of two nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, brought death and suffering to those affected countries, clearly unimaginable by many leaders and politicians today.

But never has the entire existence of mankind been in greater danger than today. The strategic war between the entire West and Russia over Ukraine has come close to a military stalemate, and that leaves only two options: either an escalation which threatens the use of nuclear weapons, or the immediate end of the war through diplomatic negotiations!

If new levels of lethal weapons, such as Taurus cruise missiles and nuclear capable F-35 stealth bombers are deployed, as now planned, it threatens to lead to a Europeanization of the war, and beyond. If it comes to a global nuclear war, mankind will end in the ensuing 10-years of nuclear winter, as will virtually all life on the planet end with it.

Where other than the UN General Assembly should this be raised? The heads of state participating in this session of this unique institution represent all nations in the world, and must address this existential danger. When the present organization of the world has led to the danger of the extinction of civilization, then that organization must be changed! The world needs a new international security and development architecture, which takes into account the security and development needs of every single country on Earth. Such a new architecture must create conditions that protect and nourish the lives of all people, and protect the potential of every person as a creative individual. This means not only people living today, but also the lives of future generations!

The world is presently experiencing an epochal change. The period of approximately 600 years of colonialism is coming to an end and is being replaced with a new world economic system that will allow life with dignity for all. The realization of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the largest infrastructure and development program in the history of mankind, has created the conditions in which more and more countries can overcome poverty and underdevelopment. The recent expansion of the BRICS, in Johannesburg, South Africa, to which now around 40 additional countries are in the process of applying for membership, and subsequent conferences in St. Petersburg, Jakarta, New Delhi and Vladivostok have demonstrated the breathtaking speed, with which a new system is emerging. In addition, the efforts to create new credit mechanisms for development, such as the BRICS New Development Bank (NDB) now becoming the “great bank of the Global South,” are welcomed and necessary.

But as of now the danger of the world separating into two blocs has not yet been overcome, and such a separation would continue the danger of the same kind of geopolitical division that was the cause of the world wars in the 20th century. Therefore, there is this urgent appeal to the countries of the Global North, that they must support the aspiration of the Global Majority to establish a just new world economic order for all!

This moment in history represents a greater challenge and chance than the end of the Cold War, to create a better world. Let us not miss that unique chance!