At an event on Jan. 17, 2026, hosted by the United Nations Association-UK to mark the 80th anniversary of the first U.N. General Assembly, former NATO secretary-general and former U.K. secretary of state for defense, George Robertson, argued that the U.N. needs more than incremental change; it needs “shock therapy.”
In an exclusive interview with Devex, Robertson discussed the existential crisis facing multilateralism and the paradoxical role of the U.N. Security Council. He proposed a radical ultimatum for the next secretary-general: refuse the job unless the P5 veto is suspended to allow for long-overdue reforms. P5 refers to the council’s “permanent five” members — the United States, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and China — and they each hold the power to unilaterally block substantive resolutions.
During the conversation, the former NATO chief weighed in on the “trade-off” between defense and development spending, arguing that while national security is paramount, it should not be funded by cutting aid budgets that serve as the front line against disasters.
Robertson also stressed the need for the U.N. to focus on future generations to ensure its relevance and effectiveness.
“The United Nations is 80, and so am I this year, and so is President Donald Trump. All of us are 80 this year,” he said. “The United Nations is going to be there, and it's got to be refreshed, and it's got to be reenergized, and it's got to look at the next generation.”
About the author
Thomas Cserep
Thomas Cserép is an Associate Editor who manages and oversees Devex's social media presence, coordinates Devex’s audience outreach, and produces the This Week in Global Development podcast. Prior to Devex, he worked as a freelance journalist, with his writings appearing in a variety of publications, including Get Spanish Football News and the magazine of the Hungarian Geographic Society.