Who’s being listened to on the global stage? Increasingly not who you might think

By TED ANTHONY
AP National Writer

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Togo’s foreign minister wasn’t having any of it. He talked of a resolve to “fight our own battles” and a refusal to be relegated to the children’s table. He might have been one of any number of leaders speaking at the United Nations this past week. They’re the voices of smaller nations that typically command less attention this time of year. This year, things felt different. Speech by speech, speaker by speaker, it became clear that on the international stage, other voices are beginning to rise and to be heard. It didn’t hurt that four of the five permanent U.N. Security Council members sent underlings rather than leaders for the General Assembly.