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E-mail Xinhua, January 2, 2025
BEIJING, Jan. 2 (Xinhua) -- Amid a turbulent global landscape, leaders worldwide have, in their New Year messages, called for peace and highlighted unity in overcoming difficulties.
The New Year should bring "real peace" worldwide, Italian President Sergio Mattarella said while addressing the country in a televised speech late on Tuesday.
In his traditional address on New Year's Eve, Mattarella stressed that the knowledge of the many conflicts and challenges at the global level was marring this festivity.
"Every New Year's Eve, we look forward to the new time to come, which we hope will be better," he said. "We need to do it all the more when going through difficult moments ... when thousands of civilian victims of ongoing wars tragically trouble our conscience."
Russian President Vladimir Putin sent his best wishes for prosperity and well-being to all Russian families and the entire country in his 2025 New Year message on Tuesday.
"Now, on the brink of the new year, we are thinking about the future. We are sure that everything will be fine. We will move forward," Putin said.
In his New Year's speech on national television Wednesday, Finnish President Alexander Stubb emphasized the importance of a rules-based international order.
It is crucial for a small country like Finland that the international system is based on rules, not force. "Challenges such as climate change, biodiversity decline, artificial intelligence, or conflicts cannot be solved without common rules," he added.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Tuesday stressed national unity and the need to face challenges together, in light of the recent deadly attack at a Christmas market in the German city of Magdeburg.
In his New Year's address, Scholz also called on fellow citizens to treat one another with respect, trust each other, show interest in each other and engage and help each other. "With this attitude, Germany can look to a bright future," he said.
Chilean President Gabriel Boric said in his New Year's message on Tuesday that current challenges facing the society, such as climate change and technological changes, need to be addressed "together."
In a nationally televised message, Boric called for building a more just, welcoming and friendly country "in which each one of us feels part of our community, a place where we collaborate during difficulties."
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi extended New Year's greetings on Tuesday to the Egyptian people and the world, expressing hopes for a year of "wellness, prosperity, and progress."
"We shall continue to work hand in hand for a future filled with peace and stability, as the spirit of cooperation and integration for the well-being of humanity prevails," said Sisi in a message posted on the official website of the Egyptian presidency.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Tuesday called 2024 "a year of victory" for the country and thanked the Venezuelan people for "so much awareness, loyalty, deep love and willingness to work."
"I wish that we continue in this spirit of joy that surrounds us along the paths of harmony and hope, because the prophetic word will be fulfilled: 2025 will be one of blessings and miraculous times for Venezuela," said Maduro in a New Year's message.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba vowed to revitalize the nation amid challenges posed by severe population declines on Wednesday in his New Year's message.
The prime minister also pledged to help promote pay hikes and corporate capital spending in order to create a "growth-driven economy" led by wage increases and investment.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer pledged Wednesday to rebuild Britain in 2025 as his government seeks to turn the tide after a challenging first six months in power.
In a prerecorded New Year message, Starmer acknowledged the economic difficulties facing many people. "This government will fight for you," and described this "fight for change" as something that will "define this year, next year, and indeed -- every waking hour of this government," he said. Enditem
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