French Academics Debate the Future of the United Nations

Paris, France – To mark the 80th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations, a conference was held on November 7, 2025, at the headquarters of UPF-France at Espace Barrault in Paris. Under the theme “At 80 – What Future for the United Nations?” the event was dedicated to examining the organization’s founding principles, its evolving objectives, and its prospects in a rapidly transforming global context.

Eighty years after the adoption of the San Francisco Charter, multilateralism appears increasingly weakened by civilizational tensions, internal conflicts, and environmental crises that challenge the universal values once affirmed by the international community. At the same time, the renewed aspiration for non-alignment – shared by many post-decolonization states – and the rise of new forms of non-Western multi-alignment, reflect a growing desire to include both state and non-state actors in international relations.

Opening the discussion, Prof. Emmanuel Dupuy, president of the Institute for Prospective and Security in Europe (IPSE), introduced the theme “Non-Alignment and the Polymorphism of the International System: Solutions to the Lethargy of Multilateralism.” He underscored the need for greater investment in education for self-determination and advocated openness to institutional competition with the United Nations as a means of revitalizing global governance.

Considering the veto power reserved for the victors of World War II to be an anachronistic privilege, and recalling General de Gaulle’s 1966 address in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, which acknowledged the emergence of non-aligned countries as an undeniable geopolitical reality, Professor Dupuy outlined the prospect of a non-aligned, multipolar international model capable of challenging the current structure of the UN system.

Mr. Jacques Marion, president of UPF-France, emphasized the importance of religious diplomacy in addressing certain structural limitations of the United Nations. He reminded participants that, at its founding, religion had been deliberately excluded from the UN framework due to the context of the emerging Cold War – a fact exemplified by the two-decade interval before a pope, Paul VI, first addressed the General Assembly.

Mr. Marion further observed that the end of the Cold War brought increased awareness of the need to respond to ethnic and religious conflicts through genuine spiritual diplomacy within the UN framework. In this regard, he cautioned that the development of a non-aligned and polymorphous international system – such as the one envisaged earlier in the discussion – could easily succumb to the self-centered tendencies of nation-states unless guided by universally shared moral and spiritual values.

The conference concluded with a dynamic exchange among participants, who raised pertinent questions and contributed to a substantive and constructive debate, which continued informally over a convivial reception.

By Jacques Marion, President, UPF-France November 7, 2025