On 80th anniversary of UN Charter, Guterres sounds alarm

Thursday marks 80 years since the signing of the United Nations Charter. The UN chief has sounded a strong alarm over what he called "assaults" on the world body's founding document.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres addressed a General Assembly meeting held on Thursday to commemorate the anniversary. He stressed that the world "cannot and must not normalize violations of" the Charter's most basic principles.

He cited the "threat or use of force against sovereign nations" and infringements of international humanitarian and human rights laws. Analysts say the UN needs to undergo structural reform. They say the existence of the UN Security Council is being questioned as it has become dysfunctional.

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