The United Nations is warning that the U.S. and Europe may slip back into an economic recession if the euro zone fails to address its fiscal crisis.

A report issued on Thursday by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs stated that 2012 will be a “make-or-break” year for the global economy, which is standing at a crossroad between a gradual recovery and a double-dip recession.

The report cautioned in the worst-case scenario, the global economy will grow a mere five-tenths of a percent next year.

However, the UN stressed that developing countries will serve as a growth driving force for the global economy and post economic growth of five-point-four percent on average next year. Developing countries are also forecast to grow five-point-eight percent in 2013.