The "Maleficent" star addressed attendees at the Annual Sergio Vieira de Mello Memorial Lecture at the United Nations Assembly Hall in Geneva, where she expressed the importance of inclusion and internationalism at a time when political and social tensions in the US and Europe are at an all time high, according to Vanity Fair.
Speaking in her role as a special envoy for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the actress called for people to "keep the flame of internationalism alive".
"From patriotism, but not from narrow nationalism. And that a strong nation, like a strong person, helps others to rise up and be independent."
Jolie went on to warn top politicians against turning on organisations like the UN.
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"As a citizen, I find myself looking out on a global environment that seems more troubling and uncertain than any time in my lifetime," she continued.
Jolie, 41, then made an apparent reference to the election of Republican leader Donald Trump as US President, who has drawn controversy for his immigration policies, including a new travel ban preventing travellers from six Muslim-majority nations from entering the US, and his plans to slash funding for the UN, which he previously dismissed as "just a club for people to get together, talk and have a good time".
"We hear some leaders talking as if some of our proudest achievements are in fact our biggest liabilities. There is no shortcut to peace and security. We need to stand true to the ideals of the UN... We are the UN."
Jolie's speech drew high praise from attendees at the Sergio Vieira de Mello Memorial Lecture, which is held annually to address key humanitarian themes and issues highlighted by the late Brazilian diplomat, who was killed in a bombing in Iraq in 2003.
That legislation was halted by a federal judge, but he recently introduced an updated version which is currently in effect.