On the final day of the Bled Strategic Forum taking place in Bled, Slovenia, the Holy See’s Secretary for Relations with States and International Organisations, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, underscores the need for dialogue and consensus building in an increasingly divided world.
Vatican News
Taking part in the 20th edition of the Bled Strategic Forum, held in the Slovenian city of the same name, Archbishop Paul Gallagher, the Holy See’s Secretary for Relations with States and International Organisations, spoke of efforts of Pope Leo to promote peace in our world, also following paths taken by Pope Francis in promoting dialogue, solidarity, and fraternity.
Launched in 2006, the Bled Strategic Forum offers a meeting platform for discussing political, security and development issues regarding Europe and the world, bringing together experts and stakeholders from a wide variety of academic, political and national backgrounds. The theme of this year’s edition is “A Runaway World” and has focused on how Europe and the European Union in particular can engage and redefine their roles in addressing the complex geopolitical, economic and climate crises and tensions facing the world today.
On the Forum’s final day on Tuesday 2 September, Archbishop Gallagher took part in a round table discussing “Revitalizing Leadership and Multilateralism in an Era of Conflict and Fragmentation”. The debate looked at how political and societal efforts can redefine leadership in favor of peace in bold, inclusive, and multilateral ways, even in an era of fragmentation. Discussions underscored how leadership for peace is a collective, courageous practice that must rise to meet the complexities of today’s world.
Among the topics discussed with questions from the public, Archbishop Gallagher acknowledged what other participants pointed out about the challenges posed by the lack of consensus and political efforts needed to rebuild it. He stressed that building consensus is of primary concern today and will require “thinking outside the box” and coming up with new ideas, approaches, and solutions. And consensus building at every level is urgent, he underscored, not only at the top, such as the United Nations or national levels, but starting in local contexts.
Archbishop Gallagher added, that he personally believes the majority of our political leaders are capable of turning things around in a positive direction, but dialogue, consensus building and engagement are needed. Challenging all of this are increasing fragmentation and divisions within institutions, which can contribute to a lack of credibility or trust in them, including national governments, and so it is understandable whey populism is rising in many electoral processes. He added how many democracies are in crisis today, since they cannot deliver the two basic things that people want in life, prosperity and security.
In response to a question about the rules-based systems being under threat today, Archbishop Gallagher said today there seems to be adherence to rules only if there is some advantage in doing so, whereas in the past, the rule-based order offered a way of protecting everyone.
