non-proliferation regime, resolved the iranian nuclear issue through diplomacy. we opened relations through cuba. helped colombia and end latin america's longest war. and we welcomed a democratically elected leader of myanmar to this assembly. our assistance is helping people feed themselves, care for the africa, and promote models of development rather than dependence. we have made international institutions like the world bank and the international monetary fund more representative while establishing a framework to protect our planet from the ravages of climate change. this is important work.

the lives of our people. it could not have happened had we not worked together. and yet, around the globe, we are seeing the same forces of global integration that have made us interdependent. also exposed deep fault lines in the existing international order. we see it in the headlines every day. around the world refugees flow across borders in flight from brutal conflict. financial disruptions continue to weigh upon our workers, and entire communities. across vast swaths of the middle east basic security, basic order has broken down.

muzzling journalists, quashing dissent and stifling the flow of information. terrorist networks use social media to prey on the minds of our youth, endangering open societies and spurring anger against innocent immigrants and muslims. powerful nations contest the constraint place on them by international law. this is the paradox that defines our world today. a quarter century after the end of the cold war the world is by many measures less violent and more prosperous than ever before and yet our societies are filled with uncertainty and unease and strife.

people lose trust in institution, governing becomes more difficult. tensions between nations become more quick to surface. and so i believe that at this moment we all face a choice. we can choose to press forward with a better model of cooperation and integration, or sharply divided, and ultimately in conflict along age-ol' lines of nation and tribe and race and religion. i want to suggest to you today that we must go forward and not backward. i believe that as imperfect as they are, the principles of open

human rights, an international law, that we have forged remain the firmest foundation for human progress in this century. now i make this argument not based on theory or ideology but on facts. facts that all too often we forget in the immediacy of current events. here's the most important the integration of our global con he my has made life better for billions of men, women and children. over the last 25 years the number of people living in extreme poverty from near 40% of the humanity to under 10%. that is unprecedented and it is not an abstraction. it means children have enough to eat.

meanwhile cracking the genetic code promises to cure diseases that have plagued us for centuries. the internet can deliver entirety of human knowledge to a young girl in a remote village on a single handheld device. in medicine and in manufacturing and education and communications we're experiencing a transformation of how human beings live on a scale that recalls revolutions in a as a result a person born today is more likely to be healthy, to live longer and to have access to opportunity than at anytime in human history. moreover the collapse of colonialism and communism has allowed more people than ever before people the freedom to choose their leaders, despite the real and troubling areas

retreat. the fact remains that the number of democracies around the world has nearly downed in the last 25 years. in remote corners of the world citizens are demanding respect for the dignity of all people, no matter their gender or race or religion or disability, or sexual orientation and those who deny others dignity are subject to public reproach. an exploon given ordinary people more ways to express themselves. it has raised people's expectations for those of us in you power. indeed our international order has been so successful, that we take it as a given, that great powers no longer fight world wars. that the end of the cold war lifted the shadow of nuclear armageddon. that the battlefields of europe

that china and india remain on a path of remarkable growth. i say all this not to whitewash the challenges we face or suggest complacency, rather i believe that we need to acknowledge these achievements in order to summon the confidence to carry this progress forward, and to make sure we do not abandon those very things that have delivered in order to move forward though, we do have to acknowledge that the existing path to global integration requires a course correction. too often those trumpeting the benefits of globalization have ignored inequality within and among nations. have ignored the enduring appeal

have left international institutions ill-equipped, underfunded, underresourced in order to handle transnational challenges. as these real problems have been neglected, alternative visions of the world have pressed forward, both in the wealthiest countries and in the poorest. religious fundamentalism, the politics of ethnicity or tribe aggressive nationalism. a crude populism, sometimes from the far left but more often from the far right which seeks to restore what they believe was a better, simpler age, free of outside contamination. we can not dismiss these visions. they are powerful.

among too many of our citizens. i do not believe those visions can deliver security or prosperity over the long term. but i do believe that these visions fail to recognize at very basic level our common humanity. moreover i believe that the acceleration of travel and technology and telecommunications together with the global economy that depends on a global supply cha it self-defeating ultimately for those that seek to reverse this progress? today a nation ringed by walls would only imprison itself. so the answer can not be a simple rejection of global integration. instead we must work together to make sure the benefits of such integration are broadly shared.

economic, political, and cultural, that are caused by integration are squarely addressed. this is not the place for a he detailed policy blueprint but let me offer in broad strokes those areas where i believe we must do better together. it starts with making the global economy work better for all people and not just for those at the top. while open markets, capitalism, have raised standards of living around the globe, globalization combined with rapid progress and technology has always weakened the position of workers and their ability to secure a decent wage. in advanced economies like my own unions have been undermined

disappeared. often those who benefit most from globalization have used their political power to further undermined the position of workers. in developing countries labor organizations have often been suppressed and the growth of the middle class is held back by corruption and underinvestment. governments with export-driven models threaten to undermine the consensus that underpins global trade. meanwhile global capital is too often unaccountable. nearlytrillion dollars -- $8 trillion stashed away in ganging systems and. a world in which 1% of humanity

other 99% will never be stable. i understand the gaps between rich and poor are not new. just as a child in a slum today can see the skyscraper nearby, technology now allows any person with a smartphone to see how the most privileged among us live and the contrast between their own lives and others. expectations rise then faster than governments can deliv undermine people's faith in the system. so how do we fix this imbalance? we can not unwind integration anymore than we can stuff technology back into a box. nor can we look to failed models of the past. if we start resorting to trade wars, market distorting

natural resources instead of innovation, these approaches will make us poorer collectively and they are more likely to lead to conflict. and the stark contrast between say, the success of the republic of korea and the wasteland of north korea shows that central planned controlled economy is a dead end. but i do believe there's another path, one that innovation and offers the clearest route to individual opportunity and national success. it does not require succumbing to a soleless capitalism that benefits only the few but rather recognizes that economies are more successful when we close the gap between rich and poor and growth is broadly-based. and that means respecting the rights of workers so they can

and earn a living wage. it means investing in our people, their skills, their education, their capacity to take an idea and turn it into a business. it means strengthening the safety net that protects our people from hardship and allows them to take more risks, to look for a new job or start a new venture. these are the policies that i pursued here in the united states and with clear now 15 million new jobs. after the recession the top 1% of americans were capturing more than 90% of income growth but today that is down to about half. last year poverty in this country fell at the fastest rate in nearly 50 years. and with further investment in infrastructure and early childhood education and basic research i'm confident that such

so just as i pursued these measures here at home so has the united states worked with many nations to curb the excesses of capitalism, not to punish wealth but to prevent repeated crises that can destroy it. that's why we have worked with other nations to create higher and clear standards for banking and taxation. because a society that of oligarchs than ordinary citizens will rot from within. that is why we pushed for transparency and cooperation in rooting out corruption, and tracking illicit dollars because markets create more jobs when they're fueled by hard work and not the capacity to extort a bribe. that is why we worked to reach trade agreements that raise

have done with the trans-pacific partnership, so the benefits are more broadly shared. just as we battle inequality within our countries i believe advanced economies need to do more to close the gap between rich and poor nations around the globe. this is difficult politically. it's difficult to spend on believe this is charity. for the small fraction of what we spent at war in iraq, we could support institutions so that fragile states don't collapse in the first place, and invest in emerging economies that become markets for our goods. it is not just the right thing to do. it is the smart thing to do. and that's why we need to follow

climate change. if we don't act boldly, the bill that could come due will be mass migrations and cities submerged and nations displaced and food supplies decimated and conflicts born of despair. the paris agreement gives us a framework to act but only if we scale up our ambition. there must be a sense of urgency bringing agreement into force and helping poorer countries leapfrog destructive rm green climate fund should only be the beginning. we need to invest in research and provide market incentives to develop new technologies and make the technologies accessible and of fordable for poor -- affordable for poor countries. only then can we continue lifting all people up from poverty without condemning our children to a planet beyond

global marketplace. models that are inclusive and sustainable. in the same ways we need models of governance and inclusive and accountable for ordinary people. i recognize not every country in this hall is going to follow the same model of governance. i do not think that america can or should impose our civil of government on other countries. but there appears to be a growing contest between authoritarianism and liberalism right now. i want people to understand, i amount not neutral in that contest. i believe in a liberal political order, an order built not just through elections and representative government but through respect of human rights and civil society and independent judiciaries and the rule of law. i know that some countries which now recognize the power of free

of free societies. and perhaps those of us who have been promoting the democracy feel somewhat discouraged since the end of the cold war because we learned that liberal democracy will not just wash across the globe in a single wave. it turns out building accountable institutions is hard work. the work of generations. the gains are often sometimes we take one step forward and then two steps back. countries held together by borders drawn by colonial powers with ethnic enclaves and tribal divisions. politics and, elections can sometimes appear to be a zero sum game. faced with difficulty forging true democracy in the face of

that some argue the future favors the strong man, a top-down model, rather than than strong democratic institutions. but i believe this think something wrong. i believe the road of true democracy remains the better path. i believe that in the 21st century economies can only grow to a certain point until they need to open up because entrepreneurs need to access information in order to invent. young people need a global education in order to thrive. independent media needs to check the abuses of power. without this evolution, ultimately expectations of people will not be met. suppression and stagnation will set in.

men are then left with two paths: permanent crack down which sparks strife at home or scapegoating enemies abroad which can lead to war. now i will admit my belief that governments serve the individual and not the other way around is shaped by america's story. our nation began with a promise of freedom the few but because of our democratic constitution, because of our bill of rights, because of our ideals, ordinary people were able to organize and march and protest and ultimately these ideals won out. open doors for women and minorities and workers and in ways that made our economy more productive and turned our

that gave innovators the chance to transform every area of human endeavor. that made it possible for someone like me to be elected president of the united states. so, yes, my views are shaped by the specific experiences of america but i do not think this story is unique to america. look at the transformation that has taken place in country as diffe indonesia, botswana. the countries that have succeeded are ones in which people feel they have a stake. in europe the progress of those countries in the former soviet bloc that embraced democracies stand in clear contrast to those

because of some plot imposed from abroad. they took to the streets because their leadership was for sale and they had no recourse. they demanded change because they saw life get better for people in the baltics and in poland. societies that were more liberal and democratic and open than their own. so those of us who believe democracy, we need to speak out forcefully. because both the facts and history i believe are on our side. that doesn't mean democracies are without flaws. it does mean that the cure for what ails our democracy is greater engagement by our citizens, not less. yes, in america, there is too

partisanship. too little participation by citizens, in part because of a patchwork of laws that makes it harder to vote. in europe a well-intentioned brussels often became too isolated from the normal push and pull of national politics. too often in capitals decisionmakers have forgotten that democracy needs to b the bottom up, not governance by experts from the top be down. so these are real problems and as leaders of democratic governments make the case for democracy abroad, we better strife harder to set a better example at home. moreover, every country will organize its government informed by centuries of history and circumstances of geography and

people. i recognize traditional society may value unity and cohesion, more than diverse country like my own, found on what at the time was a radical idea. the idea of liberty of individual human beings, endowed with certain god-given rights. but that does not mean that ordinary people in asia or africa, or the middle east somehow prefer arbitrary rule that denies them a decisions that can shape their lives. i believe that spirit is universal. and if any of you doubt the the universality of that desire, listen to the voices of young people everywhere who call out for freedom and dignity and the opportunity to control their own lives. this leads me to the third thing we need to do.

fundamentalism or racism, or, a belief in ethnic superiority that makes our traditional identities irreconcilable with modernit. we need to respect for all human beings. that is truism, that global integration has led to collision of cultures. trade, migration, internet, all these things can challenge and unsettled our most cherished identities. we see liberal societies express opposition when women choose to cover themselves. we have see protests responding to a western newspaper cartoons

mohamed. the world that left the age of empire behind. we see russia attempting to recr lost glory through force. asian powers debate claims of history. in europe and united states, you sigh people wrestle with concerns about immigration and changing demographics and suggesting that somehow people corrupting the character of our countries. there is no easy answer for resolving all these we must respect meaning people draw from their own religions, ethnicity and their sense of nation hood. but i do not believe progress is possible if our desire to preserve our identities gives

dehumanize or he oppress another group. if we persecute people of another faith or jail or beat people who are gay, if our traditions lead us to prevent girls from going to school, if we discriminate on the basis of race or tribe or ethnicity, then the fragile bonds of civilization will fray. the world is too small. we are too packed together. for us to be able to resort to the old ways of thinking. we see this mind set in too many parts of the middle east. there is so much of the collapse and order has been fueled because leaders sought legitimacy not because of

resorting to persecuting political opposition or demonizing other religious sects. by narrowing the public space to the mosque where in too many places perversions of a great faith were tolerated and these forces built up for years and are now at work helping to fuel both serious tragic -- syria's tragic civil war mindless medieval menace of isil. the mine set of sectarianism, and extremism, and bloodletting and retribution that has been taking place will not be quickly reversed. and if we are honest we understand that no external power is going to be able to force different religious communities or ethic communities to coexist for long but i do believe we have to be honest about the nature of these

continue to work with those who seek to build rather than to destroy. and there is a military component to that. it means being united and relentless destroying networks like isil which show no respect for human life you but it also means that in a place like syria where there's no ultimate military victory to be won, we're going to have to pursue the hard work of diplomacy that aims to stop the violence and deliver aid to those in support those who pursue a political settlement and can see those who are not like themselves as worthy of dignity and respect. across the regions conflicts we have to insist all parties recognize a common human at this and that nations nations end proxy wars that fuel disorder because until basic questions are answered about how