The 17th report of the UN Secretary-General on the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) titled “Responsibility to Protect: 20 years of commitment to principled and collective action,” highlights a troubling trend: despite the unanimous commitment to end atrocity crimes, such crimes have increased around the world, exposing a persistent gap between promises and meaningful action, particularly in the world’s gravest cases. Within the report the Secretary-General issues a stark warning, noting that continued failures to protect populations – despite our improved understanding of risk factors and enhanced capacity for response – denote a deeper, alarming challenge to mobilizing response. To address these challenges, the Secretary-General emphasizes the urgent need for renewed strategic investment and consistent, collective international action, offering concrete recommendations to more effectively implement R2P’s three pillars moving forward.

The Global Centre has produced a summary of the report, which is available here: Summary of the UN Secretary-General’s 2025 Report on R2P, Responsibility to Protect: 20 years of commitment to principled and collective action