明石会長の東京平和構築フォーラムでの開会の辞 (2025年12月02日)
In his opening remarks at the Tokyo Peacebuilding Forum held on 25 October 2025 at JICA Conference Hall, Mr. Akashi reflected on key UN experiences from Hungary to Cambodia and Yugoslavia, noting both achievements and setbacks of global multilateralism. Citing recent Japan–China–Korea UN Association dialogues, he stressed that despite challenges, the UN’s 80-year legacy showed progress and justified optimism for a brighter shared future.
Tokyo Peacebuilding Forum 2025
“80th Anniversary of the United Nations:
Challenges and Future Prospects”
JICA Ichigaya Global Square Shinjuku City,
Saturday, October 25, 2025,
Opening Remarks by Yasushi Akashi,
GPAJ Honorary President
It is my unique privilege to say a few words about the real significance of this Tokyo Peacebuilding Forum 2025. I remember distinctly that, when I joined the United Nations Secretariat as a young political affairs officer in 1957, my first UN work was to participate in writing Secretary-General’s report on the Soviet invasion of Hungary at that time. The invasion was not just once, but twice over two years.
Much later, I had the challenge of participating in actually establishing peace and democracy on the ground in Cambodia in 1991 to 1993, which, however, had to be balanced by the subsequent setbacks we experienced in the Former Yugoslavia in the following years.
The so-called “safe areas” in Yugoslavia, defined by the Security Council at that time were not all “safe” or “peaceful” without the necessary troops required by the UN side. We were, however, proud of what we were able to do, while the Security Council kept adopting nearly 200 resolutions, without being unable to bring about real change for the better on the ground.
This year, in Kyoto, three UN Associations of Japan, China and South Korea, met each other and we honestly challenged the limits of “80 years of the UN history”. After four full days, we all left Kyoto with the satisfaction that we were able to talk and discuss frankly our mutual relations with each other, and touched upon the United Nations’ future possibilities on the basis of our 80 years of mixed global multilateralism.
My words to you are that there is no reason we should give up on our futures. Of course, it will not be just a simple mixture of some achievements and some disappointments. Even if it will be a mixture of achievements and disappointments, our mixed feelings at the end of 80 or 100 more years will certainly be much better than the total one hundred percent disappointments. My feeling is that our common future will be much brighter, based on our solid experiences of global multilateralism.