UN General Assembly 73rd Session

Germany’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Heiko Maas, outlined on Friday at the United Nations General Assembly a list of crises in the world, singling out “the crisis of multilateralism” as being at the root, frustrating solutions.

Denouncing their use of “political blackmail, economic pressure, and brute force,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov mounted the podium of the United Nations General Assembly on Friday to accuse Western States of seeking to retain their self-proclaimed status as ‘world leaders.’

Addressing world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly’s general debate on Friday, Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia described the world as a fragile, unpredictable, and complicated place where countries “big and small must respect one another.”

Recalling the challenges confronting Greece not so long ago, and the calls at the time from various quarters urging unilateral steps and disengagement with the international community, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras underscored at the United Nations on Friday the importance of collective action and wisdom to overcome complex problems.

Regularly threatened, attacked and killed, journalists are also being imprisoned in record numbers around the world, an event on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly highlighted on Friday. These practices undermine not only the fundamental human rights of the reporters themselves, but also the public’s right to receive and impart information, rights experts warn.

International trade is “win-win by nature” and should not be a zero-sum game, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi told world leaders at the United Nations today, saying that China “will not be blackmailed or yield to pressure.”

At the United Nations General Assembly on Friday, Allen Michael Chastanet, Prime Minister of Saint Lucia, painted a dire picture of the challenges natural hazards pose for small island developing States and middle-income countries, saying that while the international community widely acknowledges them, “little or nothing changes.”

At the United Nations General Assembly’s annual debate on Friday, Albanian President, Ilir Meta told world leaders that “we continue to see the UN as a multilateral instrument through which peaceful international order is safeguarded.”

Drawing lessons from conflict – particularly the causes and ultimate resolution – can be a vehicle for positive change, South Sudan’s Vice-President told world leaders gathered at the United Nations General Assembly, highlighting his country’s efforts to ensure lasting peace.