In last year's speech, just prior to the financial collapse, he said, “… and I believe what will also be said of this age, the first decade of the 21st Century, that out of what will be seen as the greatest restructuring of the global economy, perhaps one even greater than at the time of the industrial revolution, a new world order was created ...”
This year, apparently, following the election of Barak Obama, the time is now right to create a "truly global society" - a term he used several times during the speech. We should now "seize the moment" offered by the greatest restructuring of the global economy to forge a "new multilateralism."
“Uniquely in this global age, it is now in our power to come together so that 2008 is remembered not just for the failure of a financial crash that engulfed the world but for the resilience and optimism with which we faced the storm, endured it and prevailed. And remembered too for how in doing so we discovered and refashioned the global power of nations working together.
“And having shown the power of coordinated global action to recapitalise our banks and cut interest rates for homeowners and businesses, this weekend in Washington we will seek to go further, launching the process of rebuilding the international financial system.
“So while I see a world that is facing financial crisis and still diminished by conflict and injustice I also see the chance to forge a new multilateralism that is both hard headed and progressive. And if we learn from our experience of turning unity of purpose into unity of action, we can together seize this moment of change in our world to create a truly global society.”
He went on ... “As America stands at its own dawn of hope, so let that hope be fulfilled through a pact with the wider world to lead and shape the twenty first century as the century of a truly global society. And I believe the whole of Europe can work closely with America to meet the great challenges which will test our resolution and illuminate our convictions.”
Interesting that he uses the word "illuminate" here ...
He also set out the five great challenges the New World Order world now faces:
- the need to reassert faith in democracy and win the battle of ideas against terrorism and extremism
- the need to strengthen the global economy
- tackling "climate change"
- resolving conflict - the need for a new "stabilisation and reconstruction agency" ready, through civilian as well as military assistance, to "rebuild" conflict-ridden and fragile states
- meeting the Millennium Development Goals
He concluded with an appeal to world leaders, “My message is that we must be internationalist, not protectionist; interventionist not neutral; progressive not reactive; and forward looking, not frozen by events. We can seize the moment and in doing so build a truly global society.”
