Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has reignited global debate over the ongoing war by highlighting massive differences between military spending and humanitarian aid. Sánchez pointed to Pentagon figures showing the United States spent over $29 billion on the war while cutting nearly $18 billion in global health and development assistance. Humanitarian aid linked to the conflict reportedly stood at just $49 million at one stage — creating a staggering 510-to-1 spending ratio favoring war over relief efforts. Sánchez, who has opposed the war since February, says the numbers speak for themselves as pressure grows across Europe and the United States over the true cost of the conflict.
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#PedroSanchez #SpainPM #USWarSpending #WarVsHumanity #PentagonNumbers #GlobalAidCuts #SpainAgainstWar #USMilitaryBudget #HumanitarianCrisis #WarFunding #BreakingNews #SpainNews #USPolitics #MilitarySpending #AidCuts #Geopolitics #WorldNews
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00:00Director General of the World Health Organization, Your Excellences, Ladies and Gentlemen.
00:04Allow me to begin with an age-old question.
00:10What is the first sign of civilization?
00:15It wasn't the wheel, nor was it fire, nor was it writing.
00:20Some will say that the answer lies in a bone,
00:24a human femur found in an archaeological site thousands of years from thousands of years ago,
00:34and it had an extraordinary feature.
00:36It had been broken, and yet it had knitted itself back together.
00:42This knitted bone is the first sign of civilization,
00:46because civilization does not begin with a tool, rather with an extended hand.
00:51And it is exactly there where we also see global health begin,
00:57in the awareness that each and every one of us, before or afterwards, are a broken femur,
01:05in the conviction that taking care of those who cannot take care of themselves
01:09is not an act of charity, but rather the very essence of what makes us human.
01:16No society, therefore, deserves to call itself civilized if it abandons those who fall.
01:24For this reason, and when I stand before those who are using national priorities to exclude,
01:30many others of us understand for some time now that the true priority of any state or country
01:37is to protect the health of its own citizens, without exceptions, nor conditions.
01:42Because anyone who divides societies between first- and second-class citizens
01:48are not strengthening their countries, but rather weakening them.
01:51Forty years ago, when Spain began its transition towards democracy,
01:58we focused and set our sights on public, universal, and free health care,
02:04and to make health care a right.
02:09And this transformed our country.
02:11In a single generation, child mortality plunged,
02:17and we gained over a decade of life expectancy,
02:21and we are now leading the European Union in longevity,
02:25along with Italy and Sweden.
02:27And for the first time in our history, we have moved past the 84-year-old mark for life expectancy.
02:35This could never have happened without some impetus.
02:38It requires political will.
02:40It requires resources as well, no doubt about that.
02:44And it requires a committed citizenry that will not allow for any backsliding.
02:50Indeed, an extraordinary citizenry that shows that humanity will always be able to deliver.
02:58Without going any further, on the 24th of March,
03:00we beat the donation record in bodies in 48 hours.
03:0639 persons, including 34 deceased whose families consented,
03:11allowed us to save the lives of 75 human beings in only 48 hours by donation of organs.
03:19And that is the Spain that I lead.
03:22And our government has the moral duty to rise to the level of this civic spirit.
03:30For this reason, in recent years, we have increased our health budget by 43%.
03:36In 2024, health expenditure exceeded 100 billion euros, that is 6.4% of our GDP.
03:45We have ensured that there is universal access to health care without regard to origin of economic situation.
03:58We have also expanded the portfolio of public services in line with recommendations of the WHO
04:03with new neonatal facilities and an improvement in dental health coverage for people over 65 years of old.
04:14So, with all of this, we know that this is not enough.
04:16Because despite the robustness of this health system,
04:20it is true that our system is sharing a challenge shared by many other countries,
04:25which is the pressure of those who want to make health into a business.
04:30Leaders who are coming to these institutions to divert millions of public funds to private corporations
04:39and weakening the common good to enrich a few.
04:43Whoever converts health into a privilege and subject it to the dictates of money
04:49break the most basic social contract of any democratic system.
04:53The consequences of this model are simply devastating.
04:57In 2022 alone, 1,600 million persons, 1.6 billion persons,
05:06went bankrupt trying to provide for their own health care.
05:11And that is a quarter of the world's population facing financial difficulties to meet health care costs.
05:19One in four persons across the world has to choose between seeking health care or eating.
05:26And this happens at a time when there are huge global challenges
05:31and we are living in a world where disinformation is undermining confidence in science
05:36and is therefore jeopardizing many lives.
05:40A world which is older and older with new health care needs,
05:46a profoundly interconnected world where a health threat in any place in the world,
05:53such as Ebola, can become a global crisis in a question of days, in a matter of days.
05:57In a world where we still have to deliver on fundamental commitments under the 2030 agenda,
06:04ensuring healthy lives, reducing inequalities,
06:08and ensuring that scientific progress and health progress actually does reach the people
06:13where they actually live, regardless of where they live.
06:16The COVID-19 pandemic left us with a lesson that we cannot ignore and we will never forget.
06:24We cannot protect health in our borders if we are not able to also protect them outside and beyond our
06:31borders
06:31because viruses do not understand the concept of borders nor flags or passports.
06:37Therefore, no country can save itself.
06:40No country can save itself.
06:41Protecting others is the best way to protect ourselves, our own selves.
06:47We have been for the past 12 years been living with Ebola
06:53and unfortunately we are going through this crisis again
06:57and we saw six years ago growth in the COVID-19 pandemic
07:04and this same fear recently because of the Hantavirus outbreak on the MV Hondius.
07:13Therefore, investing in global health is therefore investing in security for our people and our citizens.
07:19But I also want to say that this is not just a question of security,
07:22it's a question of justice
07:24because it is obvious that neither you nor I wish to live in a world where 12 persons can own
07:33more wealth
07:34than the rest of the rest of the world
07:36and a world where some women cannot even feed their children.
07:41I am sure that you are convinced that we don't wish to live in a planet
07:44where for millions of women delivering their child is a question of fear rather than hope.
07:52Accepting something like this is assuming that the lives of millions of persons is worth less
07:57simply because of where they live.
07:58I am therefore convinced that none of you here is ready to accept this
08:03and I think that nobody should accept this status quo
08:06because simply speaking, this situation is not inevitable.
08:11It is not a historic fatality.
08:13It is a result of political decisions,
08:15political decisions taken by a few
08:18and blessed, unfortunately, by the silence of many others.
08:22In the last two years alone,
08:26international financing for global health has reduced by about 30%.
08:37And this is over the last two years,
08:40a 30% drop in global health spending
08:42and the consequences are already here.
08:44The fowls have come home,
08:45chickens have come home to roost.
08:48Reduction in child mortality has stagnated for the first time in decades.
08:53Measles, a disease that we thought had been controlled,
08:57is now expanding again
08:58and if we don't act, 14 million persons could die before 2030 for preventable causes,
09:04including 4.5 million children under five years of age.
09:0814 million lives.
09:10Not because we don't know how to save these lives,
09:13we do know how to save them,
09:14but rather because some have decided not to do so.
09:18The greatest risk for global health is no longer the lack of science,
09:22but rather the lack of conscience.
09:25In just a few months,
09:27the same country that cut $18 billion from global public health and ODA
09:35has spent more than $29 billion on war,
09:40the humanitarian consequences and geopolitical consequences
09:44of which will also be devastating.
09:46And given the situation,
09:47the position of my government in Spain
09:49has been limited to common sense
09:52because common sense is what makes us stand up before those
09:58who have decided that some should live and others should die
10:00based on their zip code.
10:03We have to use common sense when it comes to war,
10:07when those who impose unilateralism over multilateralism,
10:12when it should be easy to help everyone.
10:21What is happening is that at this time,
10:23Your Excellencies,
10:24defending common sense has become a form of rebellion
10:28because there is a pandemic that nobody wishes to curb,
10:32and that is the pandemic of egoism, selfishness,
10:35and that is what is really affecting our societies,
10:38and that also can spread.
10:41For this reason,
10:42whenever some people withdraw,
10:43my country decided to step forward.
10:48Ever since I have been honored to lead the government of Spain,
10:52we have doubled our ODA.
10:54Only last year,
10:55while many countries were cutting,
10:56we increased our ODA by 13%.
11:00We have pledged 315 million euros
11:04to the global health system for 2025-2027
11:08with contributions to Gave,
11:10the Global Fund,
11:11and of course to the World Health Organization.
11:14I do know that it is not enough
11:16to fill the gap that others have left.
11:19I do know that,
11:20but please be assured
11:22that our example will be followed by many others
11:25sooner than later
11:27because the impetus to strengthen global health
11:30can only be collective,
11:31and it should be supported at least
11:33along three fundamental pillars
11:37that I would like to now share with you.
11:38The first one is to invest
11:40in the global response capacities
11:43to future health crises.
11:46For many years,
11:47we have been working to move ahead,
11:50work on the pandemic treaty.
11:53The agreement reached in 2025,
11:54I believe was a huge achievement.
11:56Now, what we must do
11:57is give it that push over the edge.
12:00Let's do it.
12:02We must also strengthen regional production chains
12:06for medicines,
12:07increase our rapid response capacities,
12:10and ensure that never again
12:12will access to vaccines or treatments
12:15depend on the economic power
12:17or the place where our societies are located.
12:21The second pillar is to reform
12:23the financial architecture of global health.
12:26We need more resources.
12:28There is no doubt,
12:29but we also need new mechanisms
12:30to mobilize them,
12:32and just global taxation.
12:403.4 billion persons live in countries
12:43that spend more money
12:44to pay interest on their debt
12:46than to finance health or education.
12:48No international system can be fair
12:52when people have to choose
12:54between paying their creditors
12:56or pay for the health
12:58and defend the health of their citizens
13:00between saving their balance sheets
13:05or saving lives.
13:07We must strengthen the mechanisms
13:09to provide relief
13:10and debt relief and debt swaps
13:13and prevent millions of persons
13:15from continuing to pay the consequences
13:17of a profoundly unequal system.
13:21The third pillar
13:24is to democratize governance of global health
13:27and make it more effective and efficient.
13:29The countries in the global south
13:30must have the role that they deserve
13:32in decision-making, internationally speaking.
13:35We must also ensure
13:36that there's better coordination
13:37and reduce excessive fragmentation.
13:40We must also situate at the center
13:43the strengthening of national health centers
13:46because there will be no global health security
13:49while we have millions of persons
13:51depending on fragile
13:52or under-financed health systems.
13:54Nobody will forget,
13:56and we must never forget
13:58the best lesson from the pandemic,
14:00there is no national security possible
14:02in a world that has no health security.
14:06Anyone who understands this
14:09after an episode such as what we experienced
14:12in 2020 is either ignorant
14:14who has not understood
14:15is either ignorant or silly.
14:17Let's show that we have learned the lesson
14:19now that the WHO has declared
14:20the outbreak of Ebola in the DRC
14:23as a public health emergency
14:26of international concern.
14:27I conclude, distinguished delegates,
14:30as you all know,
14:31and I had the opportunity to address this
14:34at the invitation of the Director General,
14:37my friend Tedros,
14:38because, as you all know,
14:40just a few days ago,
14:41almost 150 persons were trapped
14:43on a vessel
14:45because of an outbreak of Hantavirus.
14:49150 persons in fear,
14:51a great deal of fear,
14:53uncertainty,
14:54with families waiting for news of them.
14:57And in my country,
15:00someone raised the question
15:02whether we should help them
15:04or abandon them to their fate.
15:07And when we received the call
15:09from the World Health Organization
15:12requesting our assistance,
15:15we didn't hesitate.
15:16So this question
15:18as to whether we should help
15:20or abandon them
15:21might seem a minor question
15:23after we did take,
15:25after all,
15:26the decision to help them.
15:27But this question
15:28has,
15:30circumscribes one of the most important
15:31dilemmas of our time.
15:33because at this time,
15:35there are still people
15:36who believe
15:37that international law
15:39is an a la carte menu,
15:40that the allegations
15:41are therefore optional,
15:43that solidarity
15:44depends on expedience.
15:48Spain responded
15:49to this call
15:50and that decision
15:52enabled us
15:52to evacuate
15:53over 120 persons
15:56to screen for cases
15:59early
16:00and to treat them
16:01before it was too late.
16:02But there was
16:03a second consequence
16:04and it was equally important
16:06and I wanted to share it
16:07with you today.
16:08Whenever a country
16:09acts responsibly,
16:11others follow suit.
16:14This is a sort of
16:17contagion of solidarity.
16:19The WHO,
16:19the World Health Organization,
16:21the European Union
16:23Communions
16:26bodies
16:27and the other countries
16:28whose citizens
16:30were on board
16:30that vessel
16:31worked together
16:32with loyalty
16:33and commitment
16:34to make the operation
16:35a success.
16:36And what I'm really
16:37trying to say
16:37is that whenever
16:38we expect
16:39international law,
16:41we all win.
16:42Spain,
16:44your excellences,
16:44is a medium-sized power.
16:46We cannot make up
16:48for the huge cuts
16:51that are being made
16:52to the international
16:53health system
16:54but what we can do
16:55is do something
16:56and it is along
16:57with many other countries
16:58to take a step forward.
17:00A few months ago
17:01at the conference
17:04on development
17:05in Seville,
17:05we launched a platform
17:06for health action.
17:09This was an initiative
17:11to mobilize
17:12political will,
17:13economic resources
17:15and the necessary
17:16partnerships
17:17to tackle
17:18this backsliding
17:19that we're seeing
17:20in global health.
17:22And why not?
17:23Because if we have to imagine
17:24and build together
17:25this global health
17:28governance system
17:29which is more effective
17:30and equitable
17:31than our citizens
17:34of the world
17:35are requesting of us,
17:36we have to work together.
17:37And today,
17:38I am here in Geneva
17:39as the first
17:43leader of the government
17:45of Spain
17:45addressing this assembly
17:46to say that
17:47we are with you
17:49and we would like you
17:50to join us
17:51because reforming
17:52global health
17:53can be done
17:55by those
17:56who cut it
17:58or those
17:59who are defending
18:00multilateralism
18:00based on mutual trust
18:03in global
18:03public health systems.
18:05Those who believe
18:06in imposing their might
18:09or those who believe
18:10in shared leadership
18:12which is the case
18:13of most of us.
18:14Those who build walls
18:16or those who understand
18:17that no one
18:18can save themselves alone.
18:19And I think that
18:20that is the decision
18:21that we have before us
18:22because international leadership
18:23does not consist only
18:25in having more might.
18:26True international leadership
18:28begins when a country
18:29decides to take action
18:31when others are stepping back.
18:33and it consists
18:34in being able
18:35to forge partnerships
18:40to make us stronger.
18:42History will judge us
18:43and I will say
18:44that if we were able
18:45to care for life
18:47when we knew
18:48how to do so,
18:50if we did it
18:51with the same conviction
18:52in any part of the world,
18:53even there
18:54where war
18:55is risking lives
18:57each day
18:58and we can only
19:00respond
19:01with our heads
19:02held high
19:02if we understand
19:03something very simple.
19:05Either we fight together
19:07or we fall divided.
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