Secretary-General's remarks at the UN Peace Bell Ceremony

On 21 September, the world observes the International Day of Peace, marked by Peace Bell Ceremonies held across the globe. In Mongolia, members of the faith community gathered at the Peace Bell Monument in the heart of Sukhbaatar Square, Ulaanbaatar, to commemorate this important day in a spirit of unity and solidarity.

Representatives of different faith traditions offered prayers before lighting candles and ringing the Peace Bell, expressing their shared hopes for peace, harmony, and understanding across the world.

During the ceremony, the United Nations Resident Coordinator had the honour of delivering the special message of the United Nations Secretary-General to the participants at the Peace Bell Ceremony.

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Read the full message of the UN Secretary-General below:

Each year, the toll of the Peace Bell reminds us of the most important and consequential job we have: 

Building peace. 

Peace is never a passive achievement. 

Peace is hard work. 

Peace is action.  

But in our world today, action for peace is faltering. 

Violence and division are tearing apart communities.

Conflicts are widening and deepening. 

People are suffering. 

And the dialogue and solidarity that solutions require are missing in action. 

But where governments are failing to deliver peace, people are showing another way. 

Around the world, volunteers, advocates, civil society leaders, peacekeepers and peacemakers are doing the heavy lifting of peace. 

Raising their voices.

Bridging divides. 

Healing communities. 

Through their actions, large and small, they are bringing to life the theme of this year’s International Day of Peace: “Investing in Peace: For Everyone, Everywhere, Every Day.” 

As world leaders prepare to gather at the United Nations in the coming weeks, I urge them to follow the lead of these champions of peace. 

By investing in sustainable development — in people’s health, education, nutrition and social protection. 

By building institutions and systems that people can trust. 

By safeguarding the human rights and dignity that belong to every person. 

By re-committing to the proven tools of peace — diplomacy, dialogue, negotiation and peacekeeping. 

And by ending wars and conflicts. Now.  

Today, I call on world leaders to stand with us:

Take action;

Invest in solutions;

And do the hard work of building lasting, sustainable peace. 

This is the last time I will ring the Peace Bell. 

But I will always stand with the champions of peace around the world. 

Thank you.

António Guterres
9 September 2026