UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday called for a strengthened and renewed multilateralism as the world is striving to respond and recover from COVID-19.

"As we strive to respond and recover, we must re-examine many longstanding assumptions and reconsider the approaches that have led us astray. We must also re-imagine the way nations cooperate," Guterres told a high-level segment of the UN Economic and Social Council on multilateralism after COVID-19.

The pandemic has underscored the need for a strengthened and renewed multilateralism: a multilateralism based on the powerful ideals and objectives enshrined in the (UN) Charter and in the agreements defined across the decades since; a multilateralism built on trust, that is based on international law and is geared toward the overarching goals of peace and security, human rights and sustainable development, he said.

"We need a networked multilateralism, in which the United Nations and its agencies, the international financial institutions, regional organizations and others work together more effectively with stronger institutional links," said Guterres. "And we need an inclusive multilateralism, drawing on the critical contributions of civil society, business, foundations, the research community, local authorities, cities and regional governments. This, in turn, will help lead to an effective multilateralism with the mechanisms it needs to make global governance work where it is needed."