Antonio Guterres took the reins of the United Nations on New Year's Day, promising to be a "bridge-builder" . The former Portuguese prime minister and U.N. refugee chief told reporters after being sworn-in as secretary-general on Dec. 12 that he will engage all governments and show his willingness to cooperate on "the enormous challenges that we'll be facing together." Guterres begins his five-year term facing conflicts from Syria and Yemen to South Sudan and Libya and global crises from terrorism to climate change, U.S. support for the United Nations remains a question mark. Guterres has made clear that his top priority will be preventing crises and promoting peace. In the first minute after taking over as U.N. chief on Sunday, Guterres issued an "Appeal for Peace." He urged all people in the world to make a shared New Year's resolution: "Let us resolve to put peace first." "Let us make 2017 a year in which we all — citizens, governments, leaders — strive to overcome our differences," the new secretary-general said. He has said there is enormous difficulty in solving conflicts, a lack of "capacity" in the international community to prevent conflicts, and the need to develop "the diplomacy for peace," which he plans to focus on. Guterres has said he will also strive to deal with the inequalities that globalization and technological progress have helped deepen, creating joblessness and despair especially among youth.
