Angelina Jolie on Refugee Crisis: World Needs to Pull Together Like After World War II

Angelina Jolie leaves the Greek Prime minister's office in Athens following a meeting with Greek Prime minister on March 16, 2016. LOUISA GOULIAMAKI/AFP/Getty Images

Angelina Jolie, special envoy of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, explained her hopes that world countries will pull together to solve the current refugee crisis.

Speaking at the BBC Radio Theatre in London on May 16, Jolie assessed the severity of the crisis and laid out what she believes is the solution.

Refugee System Breaking Down

Jolie said there’s nothing wrong with the current system for handling refugees—placing them in camps and selecting the “the exceptional cases of the most vulnerable people” for asylum.

But “today, we are seeing it break down,” she said, because of the number of conflicts and how many refugees are fleeing.

Over 60 million people are displaced today—one in every 122 people, she said. That’s the most since World War II.

Moreover, people remain displaced for an average of 20 years, Jolie said. The portion of people who return home is the smallest in 30 years.

Focus on Europe

Jolie said Europe has attracted the most attention, but deals with a minor part of the problem.

In this image from the BBC the special envoy for the United Nations refugee agency Angelina Jolie during an event in the BBC Radio Theatre, New Broadcasting House, London, Monday May 16, 2016. Jeff Over/ BBC via AP