New York / PNN /

 United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres affirmed that any entity formed to secure stability in the Gaza Strip must derive its legitimacy from the United Nations Security Council, in a clear indication that any future security arrangements require international backing.
Guterres explained, while participating in the “Special Meeting” programme on the sidelines of the World Summit for Social Development in Doha, that the UN Secretariat is not involved in the ongoing discussions around the draft resolution that the United States is working to draft.
He stressed that the US-draft resolution will be discussed among Member States of the Security Council, clarifying that the UN’s position is unambiguous: “Whatever the entity that is formed in Gaza, it must derive its legitimacy from the Security Council.”
On another front, Guterres delivered an urgent call to the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces to cooperate with his Special Envoy and to work toward a political settlement that ends the violent conflict in their country.
He emphasized that the perpetrators of crimes must not go unpunished, demanded an immediate cessation of hostilities, and urged the international community to end arms supplies and support to the fighters, warning that their continuation “only worsens the miserable situation.”
He called on the warring parties to sit at the negotiating table and bring this “nightmare of violence and conflict” to a close, adding: “It is time for peace in Sudan.”
Separately, at the World Summit for Social Development, Guterres pointed to the urgent need to spend US $1.3 trillion annually to finance climate-change response in developing countries. He noted the summit is being held at a critical moment of conflict, division and poverty, with around 700 million people globally living in extreme poverty and developing countries not receiving the support they need.
He warned that humanity still suffers from poverty, displacement and unemployment, and that the international community is not moving fast enough to leverage innovation and tackle global warming. According to Guterres, the gravest danger is that the world is visibly drifting away from achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
He pointed out that 14,000 people are participating in the second World Summit for Social Development in Doha, including delegates from 186 countries, to discuss ways to reduce poverty and social inequalities, strengthen social protection, and expand access to decent paid work globally.