In a wide-ranging speech before the world’s leaders on Tuesday, President Joe Biden elevated his policy ideals to the world stage, urging allies to join together to uphold democracy, commit to tackling challenges like the pandemic and climate change and fight against oppression and terrorism, as he reassured them that America is “back at the table.”

What You Need To Know

  • In a wide-ranging speech before the world’s leaders on Tuesday, President Joe Biden elevated his policy ideals to the world stage, urging allies to join together to tackle challenges facing nations around the world

  • The president said the world was at an 'inflection point': a shift away from armed conflict and a shift toward 'relentless diplomacy' to solve world problems, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change

  • He promised additional U.S. comittments to fight the pandemic around the world, to be announced tomorrow, and he asked other leaders to set their maxmimum goals to fight climate change

  • President Biden also urged nations to uphold 'human dignity' and highlighted the necessity to protect human rights around the world, calling democracy the marker of future global success

At the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly, the president painted a world at an inflection point: an opportunity to turn away from conflicts of the past, such as Afghanistan, and instead turn toward a “new era of relentless diplomacy” and partnership between countries with similar ideals.

There were clear echoes of speeches he’s given domestically in recent weeks — calling “code red” on climate change as he toured the impact of natural disasters in Louisiana, New York and Western states; promising to “build back better” globally as he hopes to do at home by bolstering infrastructure and social programs; calling for unity among democratic nations as he calls for the same from Americans at home, because challenges are best tackled together.

In his first speech to the U.N. as president, Biden on Tuesday was clear that he sees the future of the world one in which democracy will prevail, as long as democratic nations “prove” themselves. 

“The future will belong to those who give their people the ability to breathe free, not those who seek to suffocate their people with an iron hand,” he said sternly, condemning authoritarian leadership.

“While no democracy is perfect, including the United States, we’ll continue to struggle to live up to the highest ideals to heal our divisions,” he added. “Democracy remains the best tool we have to unleash our full human potential.”

The president also marked a shift in U.S. foreign policy: a move away from armed conflict and toward further cooperation and alliances.

“As we close this period of relentless war, we're opening a new era of relentless diplomacy,” he said. 

Biden took time to call out the need to protect “human dignity” and people’s rights around the world, including women and girls in Afghanistan, LGBTQ individuals and religious and ethnic minorities, such as Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang, China.

He also reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to humanitarian aid, promising $10 billion “to end hunger and invest in food systems at home and abroad.”

The president zeroed in on two urgent issues that require nations united: the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change.

“Our own success is bound up in others succeeding as well,” he said Tuesday.

President Biden promised he would announce “additional commitments” to the world in the COVID-19 summit he will host Wednesday, which could result in hundreds of millions more vaccine doses donated, according to a Washington Post report. The U.S. has committed to distributing 500 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech shot and donated nearly 140 million other doses so far.

To date, the coronavirus has killed more than 4.7 million people around the globe, according to Johns Hopkins University data.

“Each death is an individual heartbreak, but our shared grief is a poignant reminder that our collective future will hinge on our ability to recognize our common humanity, and to act together,” the president said.

On climate, President Biden pressed nations to aim as high as possible in their climate goals ahead of the U.N. Climate Change Conference in late October.

“The scientists and experts are telling us that we're fast approaching a point of no return,” he said. “Every nation needs to bring their highest possible ambitions to the table when we meet in Glasgow.”

And he reassured his allies that although the U.S. was turning away from armed conflict — “military power must be our tool of last resort, not our first,” the president said — it does not mean that the country will shy away from responding to attacks: “Those who commit acts of terrorism against us will continue to find a determined enemy in the United States.” 

President Biden on Tuesday signaled openness to diplomacy even with nations that are vastly different, officially announcing that the U.S. would return to full compliance to the nuclear deal with Iran — the JCPOA — as long as Iran does the same.

“We are not seeking a new Cold War,” he promised. “The United States is ready to work with any nation that steps up and pursues peaceful resolution to shared challenges, even if we have intense disagreements in other areas, because we'll all suffer the consequences of our failure.”