focusing on hot topics and seeking solutions to global crises, the general assembly debate begins against the backdrop of conflict
2024-09-24
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[global times special correspondent in the united states xiao qiang liu yupeng has a heavy responsibility] the 79th united nations general assembly held a general debate from the 24th to the 30th. "the background in which world leaders are meeting at the united nations this week could not be more severe." the washington post said on the 23rd that wars and deep geopolitical differences are stirring up the global situation. the uae's national newspaper said on the 23rd that this is a complicated moment for the united nations. conflicts in ukraine, sudan, and the gaza strip in palestine, as well as concerns about climate change and the rise of artificial intelligence will become the most concerned issues for global leaders, and un security council reform may also become an important topic of discussion. according to the associated press on the 23rd, more than 130 heads of state and government and dozens of ministerial representatives will participate in the general debate of the united nations general assembly. ukrainian president zelensky went to new york again this year. one of his main tasks in this trip to the united states is to introduce ukraine's "victory plan." the new round of israeli-palestinian conflict has lasted for nearly a year. just one day before the start of the general debate of the general assembly, israel's air strikes on southern lebanon killed 274 people and injured 1,024 people. agence france-presse said that this is the largest cross-border conflict escalation since the outbreak of the new round of palestinian-israeli conflict. some foreign media believe that the annual meeting of the general assembly has a "bleak prospect" for resolving these hot issues. however, many politicians and scholars have also emphasized its significance. as the united nations news network said, leaders and high-level representatives of various countries will use this rare opportunity to explain their country's foreign policy on this unique multilateral international stage and seek solutions to jointly deal with global crises.
“leaving no one behind”
the associated press said that the two-day un summit on the future of the united nations opened at the un headquarters in new york on the 22nd. it is a prelude to the general debate of the un general assembly. the summit made a new commitment to multilateralism and was committed to "beginning to repair the aging global architecture" to cope with a rapidly changing world. un secretary-general guterres recently told reporters that the summit "was born out of a cold fact: the development of international challenges is faster than our ability to solve them."
it is reported that the future summit adopted the main outcome document, the "compact for the future", on the 22nd. this document is a blueprint for addressing global challenges such as conflict, climate change, artificial intelligence, and reforming the united nations and other global institutions. the role it can play depends on the implementation of the 193 un member states.
“there is a pretty clear chasm between the focus on expanding international cooperation at the future summit and the reality that the un has not been successful in gaza, ukraine and sudan,” said michael gowan, director of the un program at the international crisis group. “these three wars will be the main topics that will attract most of the attention this week.”
on the 23rd, israel launched intensive air strikes on southern lebanon. the picture shows the scene of the attack with thick smoke. (visual china)
the new york times stated that the un itself had experienced a turbulent year. in the gaza conflict, the death toll of un staff reached a record high of 220. as war, climate change and natural disasters led to a rapid increase in related needs, the un's humanitarian resources were stretched thin and funds were insufficient.
according to the united nations news network, the theme of this year's general debate of the general assembly is "leaving no one behind: working together to promote peace, sustainable development and human dignity for the benefit of present and future generations". according to convention, after the meeting begins, the secretary-general of the united nations will speak first, followed by the president of the general assembly. brazil has been the country that made the opening speech since the 10th session of the united nations general assembly in 1955. as the seat of the united nations headquarters, the united states is the second country to speak. the order of speeches for the other 191 member states is based on geographical balance, level of representation and preferences of each country. also invited to attend the meeting are the united nations observer states of the vatican and palestine, as well as the european union, which has observer status at the united nations.
the associated press said that one notable moment is that this tuesday's speech may be the last major appearance of us president biden on the world stage during his term. on the same afternoon, iran's new president pezerhchiyan will deliver a speech to world leaders. this year, french president macron and british prime minister starmer will also attend the meeting. both china and russia sent their foreign ministers to new york to attend the meeting.
the security council held three meetings
"the united nations convened a meeting against a backdrop of growing chaos and violence." the new york times reported on the 23rd that the world has fallen into deeper turmoil since the annual session of the general assembly last year. at that time, russia's special military operations against ukraine and the sudanese conflict cast a shadow over the meeting. now, a new round of israeli-palestinian conflict has caused catastrophic humanitarian losses. normally, the security council holds a meeting during the annual session of the general assembly, but this year it held three meetings, covering the ukrainian crisis, the gaza war, and the challenges of leadership in dealing with conflicts. the new york times quoted analysts as saying that the prospects for easing the russian-ukrainian conflict and tensions in the middle east during the annual session of the general assembly are very bleak.
the associated press said that this week, ukrainian president zelensky has two opportunities to stand in the spotlight. he will speak at a high-level un security council meeting convened by the united states, france, japan, malta, south korea and the united kingdom on tuesday, and will speak at the un general assembly the next morning.
before going to new york, zelensky arrived in pennsylvania, usa on the 22nd. according to the associated press, he visited an ammunition factory under extraordinarily tight security that day. democratic congressman cartwright said after meeting with zelensky in pennsylvania that the message from the other party was simple: thank you, we need more (ammunition). according to multiple foreign media reports, zelensky said in a video speech on his way to the united states that the next step of the russian-ukrainian conflict will be decided this fall. according to him, ukraine will introduce its "victory plan" in the united states, and "the us president will be the first to see the complete plan."
in an interview with the russian satellite news agency, russian deputy permanent representative to the united nations polyansky said that russia did not understand ukraine's "victory plan" and was not invited to participate in the discussion. he also said that western countries still want to put the ukrainian crisis at the core of all discussions at the united nations, which is "very strange" considering the multiple crises currently happening around the world.
the associated press said that in september last year, the russian-ukrainian conflict and zelensky were the focus of the general debate of the un general assembly. this year, as the first anniversary of the outbreak of a new round of palestinian-israeli conflict approaches, the outside world's attention will inevitably focus on the gaza war and the escalation of the israeli-lebanese conflict. the impact of these violent incidents may spread to the entire middle east. according to the plan, palestinian president abbas and israeli prime minister netanyahu will deliver speeches at the un general assembly on thursday, but some foreign media said that it is uncertain whether the latter will attend the meeting. lebanese prime minister mikati canceled his trip to new york.
on the 23rd, the lebanese ministry of public health announced that israel's air strikes on southern lebanon had killed 274 people and injured 1,024. according to afp, israel said on the 23rd that it had struck about 800 hezbollah targets in lebanon, while the latter said it had struck three locations in northern israel. according to lebanese media reports, on the morning of the 23rd, the southern part of the country "was hit by more than 80 air strikes" within half an hour.
according to cnn on the 23rd, residents in many areas of lebanon received mobile phone messages from israel that day, asking them to evacuate immediately. photos taken by cnn reporters showed that cars from all over lebanon were lined up in long queues fleeing to the capital beirut. at the same time, according to the bbc on the 23rd, northern israel is still on high alert, and local residents have been told that no more than 10 people can gather outdoors.
according to the bbc, before the start of the general debate of the un general assembly, guterres told the media that he was worried that "lebanon might become another gaza." the un special coordinator for lebanon, hennessy plaschart, posted on social media that as tensions between hezbollah and israel continue to escalate, the situation in the middle east is on the brink of "disaster."
“they believe that the united nations is still alive and well”
the washington post said on the 23rd that at the podium of the un general assembly, politicians from various countries will once again call for the virtue of cooperation, but the un itself is already struggling to cope with the surging challenges. the security council has been unable to contain the conflict between russia and ukraine, and the conflict in the middle east has put pressure on the entire un system. cases against israel and its officials are being tried by the international court of justice and the un-backed international criminal court. these investigations have caused polarized reactions, with some countries calling these trials a necessary way to enforce international law, while the us and israel believe they are full of bias.
however, according to the russian weekly argumenty i fakty on the 23rd, former russian deputy foreign minister ordzhonikidze said in an interview with reporters that in addition to ukraine and the middle east, economic development, climate warming, the threat of rising sea levels, and food security are all major issues. even if it is difficult for all parties to reach an agreement, it is still meaningful to hold a meeting of the united nations general assembly. because it is an opportunity to express one's position to the world and listen to the positions of others, and it is also a unique opportunity to hold informal talks.
the washington post quoted two scholars from the carnegie endowment for international peace as saying that although people have doubts about the efficiency of the united nations, the attention and energy that member states have invested in reaching the "compact for the future" shows that they still value the united nations and are willing to contribute to its future. "they believe that the united nations is still vibrant," and it is very important to maintain its vitality.
