Remarks by President António Costa at the joint doorstep with UN Secretary-General António Guterres 14:40 On 19 March 2026, in the margins of the European Council meeting,[...]

It is a great pleasure to welcome the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

The United Nations is a key institution in the international order. And now, in these very troubled moments that we are living, more than ever, it is decisive to uphold the international rules-based order, to support multilateralism, and to support United Nations' action.

I would like to commend especially the determination of the Secretary-General António Guterres to lead the United Nations in such a difficult moment. A lot of international actors are challenging the international order. But what we are experiencing is that, in fact, there is no alternative for the international rules-based order, because the alternative is chaos, the alternative is the war in Ukraine, the alternative is the war in the Middle East, the alternative is the dramatic humanitarian situation in Gaza, the alternative is war in several countries in Africa.

We need to uphold the international rules-based order, to support the multilateral system, and to support especially the United Nations. And I want to assure the Secretary-General that the European Union will continue to be the great supporter of your work and the work of the United Nations.

Thank you very much for accepting our invitation.