Guterres: Equality for Women Essential for Prosperity - TECHx Media Guterres: Equality for Women Essential for Prosperity
Ahead of International Women's Day 2025, the United Nations urged the international community to take firm action toward making rights, equality, and empowerment a reality for women and girls everywhere. UN Secretary-General António Guterres emphasized the importance of unlocking equal opportunities for women and girls, stating, 'When women and girls can rise, we all thrive.'
However, Guterres pointed out that instead of advancing equal rights, there has been a rise in misogyny. He stressed that opening the doors of equal opportunity for women and girls leads to a more prosperous and peaceful society, laying the foundation for sustainable development.
Reflecting on thirty years since the groundbreaking 1995 United Nations conference in Beijing, Guterres highlighted the progress made while calling for further action. 'We need action to unlock finance for countries to invest in equality, open-up opportunities for decent work, close the gender pay gap, and address care work challenges,' he added.
The UN Secretary-General also emphasized the need to strengthen laws to end violence against women and girls, increase women's participation in decision-making—including peacebuilding efforts—and remove barriers to women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).
The UN's Pact for the Future and the Global Digital Compact offer blueprints to guide these critical actions. 'When women and girls can rise, we all thrive,' Guterres concluded.
This year, International Women's Day 2025 will be celebrated under the theme, 'For ALL Women and Girls: Rights. Equality. Empowerment.' The theme calls for collective efforts to secure equal rights, power, and opportunities for everyone, with a particular focus on empowering youth, especially young women and adolescent girls, as agents of lasting change.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Etihad
an hour ago
- Al Etihad
UN Security Council meets on Iran
23 June 2025 00:05 UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) The UN Security Council met on Sunday to discuss US strikes on Iran's nuclear sites, and to adopt a resolution calling for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in the Middle was not immediately clear when it could be put to a vote. A resolution needs at least nine votes in favour and no vetoes by the United States, France, Britain, Russia or China to pass."The bombing of Iranian nuclear facilities by the United States marks a perilous turn in a region that is already reeling," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the Security Council on Sunday. "We now risk descending into a rathole of retaliation after retaliation.""We must act - immediately and decisively - to halt the fighting and return to serious, sustained negotiations on the Iran nuclear programme," Guterres world awaited Iran's response on Sunday after President Donald Trump said the US had "obliterated" Tehran's key nuclear nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi told the Security Council that while craters were visible at Iran's enrichment site buried into a mountain at Fordow, "no one - including the IAEA - is in a position to assess the underground damage."Grossi said entrances to tunnels used for the storage of enriched material appear to have been hit at Iran's sprawling Isfahan nuclear complex, while the fuel enrichment plant at Natanz has been struck again. "Iran has informed the IAEA there has been no increase in off-site radiation levels at all three sites," said Grossi, who heads the International Atomic Energy Agency. Israel-Iran Conflict Continue full coverage
Zawya
4 hours ago
- Zawya
South Africa urges dialogue to end Israel-Iran conflict
President Cyril Ramaphosa and the South African government have noted with a great deal of anxiety the entry by the United States of America into the Israel-Iran war. It was South Africa's sincerest hope that President Donald Trump would use his influence and that of the US government to prevail on the parties to pursue a dialogue path in resolving their issues of dispute. South Africa calls on the United States, Israel, and Iran to give the United Nations the opportunity and space to lead on the peaceful resolution of the matters of dispute, including the inspection and verification of Iran's status of uranium enrichment, as well as its broader nuclear capacity. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of The Presidency of the Republic of South Africa.
Middle East Eye
7 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
After US attack, Iran could reconsider its nuclear strategy
On Sunday, US President Donald Trump publicly announced: "The US military carried out massive precision strikes on the three key nuclear facilities in the Iranian regime: Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan. I can report to the world that the strikes were a spectacular military success. Iran's key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated." Following the attack, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned that the use of force by the United States against Iran today is a dangerous escalation in a region already on the edge - and a direct threat to international peace and security. On 13 June, Israel launched a series of coordinated air and cyber strikes targeting key Iranian nuclear and military infrastructure, killing several nuclear scientists and high level military commanders. In response, Iran retaliated with hundreds of missile and drone strikes against military and intelligence installations in Israel. Israel's main objective was not about Iran's nuclear programme. Since the early 1990s, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly claimed each year that Iran would build a nuclear bomb within a year or two. This has been a lie repeated for over 30 years. The truth is that by attacking Iran, Netanyahu's main objective is to overthrow the government, create instability in the country, and turn Iran - like Syria, Lebanon, and Libya - into a failed state and then break it apart. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters The consequences of US and Israeli military attacks will haunt the region, and beyond, for years to come. Here, I will highlight the key consequences of such an attack. Netanyahu's trap There is no doubt that Israel coordinated its attack on Iran with the US, Europe, and Nato, and continued the war with their direct and indirect support. Netanyahu has been trying to drag the US into a war with Iran since the 1990s, but all US presidents avoided such a trap. US attacks Iran: What are the Islamic Republic's options? Read More » Under Netanyahu's pressure, Trump killed the Iran nuclear deal, which was adopted by UN Security Council Resolution 2231, during his first term and launched a military strike against Iran's nuclear sites just months into his second term. Netanyahu praised Trump's decision to attack Iran. "Congratulations, President Trump. Your bold decision to target Iran's nuclear facilities with the awesome and righteous might of the United States will change history," he said. Ironically, the attack came after Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and Iranian Foriegn Minister Abbas Araghchi agreed that the first three rounds of nuclear talks in Oman and Italy could be a credible base for an agreement. An informed Iranian source told me: "The key elements of the deal between Witkoff and Araghchi were agreed upon over three rounds of negotiations in Muscat and Rome. The deal was as follows: Iran would accept maximum nuclear inspections and transparency, including implementation of the Additional Protocol and Subsidiary Arrangements Code 3.1 - the highest international mechanisms for inspecting a country's nuclear programme." The source added: "Second, Iran would convert or export its existing stockpile of 60-percent enriched uranium, which is sufficient to build 10 nuclear bombs. Third, Iran would halt its current high-level enrichment at 60 percent and 20 percent and reduce it to the level of civil purposes, which is 3.67 percent. Finally, Iran would fully cooperate with the IAEA to resolve all technical ambiguities. "In return, the United States would lift the nuclear-related sanctions. It was agreed that the technical teams of both sides would draft the final agreement based on these four points. But suddenly, after a call between Netanyahu and Trump, the American side stopped sending its technical team to Muscat and, in a 180-degree shift in its position, demanded the complete shutdown of Iran's peaceful enrichment programme. "This shift delayed the agreement until Trump's two-month deadline expired - and while the sixth round was set for day 63, Israel launched an attack on Iran on day 61. This was Israel's trap - designed to drag the US and Trump into a war with Iran." Israel's failure Foreign ministers from Britain, France and Germany, as well as the EU's high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, Kaja Kallas, held talks with Araghchi on Friday and agreed to meet again within a week. The E3/EU ministers were encouraged to meet the Iranian foreign minister because on 19 June, Trump gave a two-week window for diplomacy. "Last week, we were in negotiations with the US when Israel decided to blow up that diplomacy. This week, we held talks with the E3/EU when the US decided to blow up that diplomacy. What conclusion would you draw?" Araghchi wrote to Britain and the EU High Representative. Israel, the only country in the Middle East that actually possesses nuclear weapons, cannot credibly claim to be fighting against nuclear proliferation The US decision to attack Iran shows that Israel not only failed in its 10-day military operation against Tehran, but was on the verge of defeat. Why would the US intervene if Israel had not been in a crisis? Israel, the only country in the Middle East that actually possesses nuclear weapons, with as many as 400 nuclear bombs according to some estimates, cannot credibly claim to be fighting against nuclear proliferation. Moreover, all reports from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and US intelligence agencies over the past 20 years have consistently confirmed that there is no evidence of the Iranian nuclear programme pursuing weaponisation. "We do not have at this point, if you ask me, at this time, any tangible proof that there is a programme, or a plan, to fabricate, to manufacture a nuclear weapon," said the UN nuclear chief. The key point is that there was no immediate and serious threat. The claim that Iran has enough enriched stockpiles to build 10 bombs in two weeks is only half the truth. The other half is that - even if Iran decided to build a bomb - it would take them one to two years to develop the delivery systems, such as nuclear warheads. "There was no imminent threat that Iran was weaponising its nuclear programme before Israel's attack began," according to the American Arms Control Association. NPT: A political tool This is the first time that two nuclear-armed countries have launched a military attack on a non-nuclear country. This demonstrates that the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), specifically for the US and Israel, has merely been used as a political tool. "Israel was not attacked by Iran - it started that war; the United States was not attacked by Iran - it started this confrontation at this point," said Trita Parsi, the executive vice president of the Quincy Institute. The US military attack on Iran is a clear violation of the UN Charter. "The United States, a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, has committed a grave violation of the UN Charter, international law and the NPT by attacking Iran's peaceful nuclear installations," said the Iranian foriegn minister. Trump's national security team either failed to properly assess the consequences of a US military attack on Iran, or they were unable to dissuade Trump. A new nuclear strategy In any case, this event has further revealed the extent of Netanyahu's influence over the White House. "This war was provoked by Benjamin Netanyahu for his own political survival, and Donald Trump has willingly handed him American military power to prolong it. The United States is not anyone's proxy army, and our troops are not bargaining chips," said Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman. It is only natural that following the US military attack, Iran would reconsider its nuclear strategy, including its continued membership in the NPT The prespective from Tehran is that the attacks by these two nuclear-armed countries revealed that the NPT not only has no real value, but is in fact harmful. Countries like North Korea, India, Pakistan and Israel, that rejected the treaty and developed nuclear weapons have remained immune from military attacks by nuclear weapons. It is only natural that following the military attack by Israel and the United States, Iran would reconsider its nuclear strategy, including its continued membership in the NPT. Iran has suffered irreparable damage, but the negative consequences of this attack are not limited to Iran alone - they will also harm the United States and jeopardise regional peace and security. The current war may have no clear winner or loser. Instead, both Iran and Israel, along with the US, face the prospect of mutual destruction, regional destabilisation and long-term national trauma. In such a scenario, all parties would lose far more than they could ever gain. The international community must act decisively to deescalate the situation. Failure to do so risks plunging the Middle East - and possibly beyond - into a catastrophic conflict. The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Eye.
