On the eve of his final address to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Secretary-General António Guterres told Al Jazeera the state of the world ‘is getting worse’, with the Security Council paralysed by geopolitical divisions and an ‘environment of impunity’ in which middle powers believe they can do whatever they want.

He cited the combined effect of the war in Ukraine on food, fertiliser and energy exports through the Black Sea, alongside the difficulties in the Strait of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb and attacks on oil installations in the region, as devastating for developing economies. Guterres, who leaves office on 31 December, said the Security Council ‘still essentially represents the world of World War II’ and called for reform. According to TASS, more than 70 world leaders and 45 heads of state are attending the high-level week; NPR notes this is Guterres’s last General Assembly as secretary-general.