The Russian Foreign Ministry announced the current panic at the UN

There is a panic in the UN Secretariat due to the upcoming large staff reductions in the organization. This was stated by Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Vershinin, speaking at the XXIII International Likhachev Scientific Readings.

"What is happening at the UN right now, and [the UN Secretary-General's High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations] Miguel Moratinos said it well, I can say my own observation — this is a feeling of panic in the secretariat, because there is a big reduction. This is understandable in a human way, but [the question is] how to avoid not panic, but a drop in the efficiency of the [organization]," he said at the section "World Transformations: problems and Prospects."

"Work efficiency is measured not in how much we pay, but in what we get, what [are] priorities. Why does the issue of human rights stick out to the detriment of everything else? Why is there politicization of those processes that should not be politicized? It's all on the agenda," the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister added.

The representative of the UN Secretary General for the Alliance of Civilizations, former Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos, in turn, recalled that the organization's staff is planned to be reduced by at least 20%.

"Recently, the Secretary-General [UN Antonio Guterres] informed the participating states that the staff of the United Nations will be reduced by at least 20 percent. This is necessary to make the organization more competitive, more efficient. In various branches, in Nairobi, in New York, the number of employees will be reduced, the UN representation in different countries will probably be reduced," he said, according to TASS.

On March 12, Guterres officially announced the launch of the UN-80 initiative (the name refers to the 80th anniversary of the organization this year), aimed at improving the efficiency of the organization and making structural changes to its work. On May 2, its official representative Stephane Dujarric confirmed plans for large-scale reforms of the world organization. According to him, we are talking about work in three areas: optimizing the use of resources, reviewing outdated mandates and structural changes to the UN system. The latter two require the approval of Member States.

According to Reuters, the UN Secretary-General's working group proposes to combine the operational structures of the World Food Program, the UN Children's Fund, the World Health Organization and The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs into a single humanitarian body, as well as to transfer some of the staff from Geneva and New York to regional offices located in less expensive cities.