Faisal bin Farhan calls for activating “preventive diplomacy” to settle disputes globally

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan called on the international community to move away from political polarization, and to replace that with cooperation to improve economic opportunities for the peoples of the world. Criticizing the “rigid methods” of diplomatic and political work, he stressed finding an “effective mechanism” to resolve disputes through “proactive diplomacy.”
The senior Saudi diplomat was responding to questions about the issues that concern world leaders currently meeting in New York in the context of the high-level meetings of the 77th annual session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, at the “Priority” forum organized by the Future Investment Initiative Foundation Thursday in New York, and commenting on the A survey conducted in 13 countries concluded that “the first priority for people is the cost of living,” followed by three priorities related to “financial security.” While climate change and other important issues ranked seventh and eighth, the Saudi minister replied that this is “interesting,” which calls for To “refocus on our priorities as politicians,” explaining that “we must deal with these concerns.”
And when he said that the world’s population is “mostly interested in their livelihood,” he mentioned that the Saudi Vision 2030 focuses on the prosperity of the Saudi people, saying that “this is what we should push on the agenda of the global community.”
Prince Faisal cautioned that “if we do not do this, the geopolitical risk will increase significantly, the risk that we will not be able to meet the aspirations of the peoples of the world.” “We must do better to deal with these concerns,” he added. “We are entering a time when there is a lot of polarization,” he said, which “will not deliver the goals” that people aspire to. He explained that “when we talk about political polarization, this reduces cooperation and possibilities for innovation,” adding that the results of the survey “should serve as a wake-up call for us diplomats and politicians.”
The survey also indicates that the world is divided into two parts, the western Arabian Peninsula, including Africa, where 77 percent of the people there are “pessimistic”, while in the east of the peninsula there are 77 percent of the “optimistic” people.
Prince Faisal said he was “not surprised” that Saudi citizens were “optimistic”. But he expressed “concern” because “if half of the global community is pessimistic, we have to worry, because half of the global community is not receiving the necessary attention.” He warned that “if half the world does not care (…), this carries a lot of danger, because if people are not satisfied, they turn to everything that can cure” this need, and this “also reduces economic opportunities.” He called on the international community to “work together to find hope,” explaining that “if we give people hope for a better future, I think we are automatically building a better planet.” He urged world leaders to focus on conflict resolution and cooperation rather than polarization.
Prince Faisal also warned that “the idea of ​​global powers concentrating on competition and confrontation will only lead to more polarization and increase the possibilities that people will lose hope.” “We have to change the direction of the compass,” he added.
He was asked about his assessment of the current session of the General Assembly, and he replied that “one of the important things we saw is that there is a consensus that we have a lack of an effective mechanism for resolving disputes and that multilateralism is losing momentum,” adding: “We want new ideas to solve this problem.” He stressed that “the polarization is destructive to these issues,” calling for “a sharpening of enthusiasm and work to solve problems.”
Prince Faisal bin Farhan said, “Diplomacy as it is now does not work, nor does it produce. We are very stuck in rigid ways and methods,” criticizing the current context of diplomacy and calling for “flexibility and the search for compromises,” and for “finding proactive solutions instead of waiting for problems to arise to solve them,” because “preventive diplomacy can be helpful.” “There has to be a deep discussion about how we can be more effective,” he said.
Prince Faisal touched on the current world problems regarding food security and the export of food and agricultural fertilizers.
In response to a question about the G20 and some countries imitating Saudi Vision 2030, Prince Faisal bin Farhan said he was “proud of that” because Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Saudi crown prince, “wanted to build a clear roadmap for sustainable and long-term prosperity for the Saudi people.” “We strongly believe that it is the right of all people to have a say in this,” he added. He stressed that Saudi Arabia “has put in its foreign policy the responsibility of conveying this message,” adding, “We encourage international multilateral cooperation in the field of economic cooperation. We guarantee hope. If we do not give our people hope, if the peoples do not give hope, we will all end up losing.”
The CEO of the Future Investment Initiative Foundation, also known as “Davos in the Desert,” Richard Attias presented the Saudi Foreign Minister, and the forum entitled “Priority” in New York City served as a platform for dialogue and discussion that seeks to find solutions that help world leaders refine their priorities. A bridge linking the current investment potential to the future.
The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Future Investment Initiative, Yasser Al-Rumayyan, who opened the forum, participated in the discussions. He mentioned that there are crises in the face of the world, but the time to deal with them was different, referring to the example of the energy crisis that the world witnessed this year, which was preceded by campaigns launched to discredit oil and gas companies due to the climate issue in the past years. And when a crisis occurred that prompted the world to try to manage the crisis and invest in energy projects, and about the fund, Al-Rumayyan stressed that there are multiple opportunities that are still being studied, and that the fund aims to maximize investment in all fields.
It is noteworthy that the forum witnessed multiple participations and sessions in which former Danish Prime Minister Hill Thorning Schmidt, former Bhutan Prime Minister Dasho Tshering Tobgay, Minister of State for Youth Affairs Shamma bint Suhail Faris Al Mazrouei, Minister of State for Youth Affairs, Ministry of Culture and Youth in the United Arab Emirates and Dr. at the University of Pennsylvania participated. Judith Rodin, Founder and CEO of X-Rise Dr. Peter Diamandis, President of Oceans 2050 Alexandra Cousteau, CEO of GroGrow Intelligence Sarah Minker, CEO of Color Capital Marcelo Clore, among others.
“At a time when the world is undergoing a period of transformation, and with the emergence of a new world order, we believe it is necessary to understand the priorities of every demographic group around the world,” Attias said. Over the past two years, the world has faced many challenges that have affected all citizens around the world. This has led to tangible changes in our values ​​and priorities.” He added, “The priority of the Future Investment Initiative Foundation is to make a direct and positive impact on humanity by launching multiple initiatives across different fields. That’s why we decided to host the Priority Summit as an annual global dialogue that helps us understand people’s desires, hopes, and expectations. All of this is in our relentless quest to give everyone a voice and an opportunity to express themselves.”