President of the UN General Assembly Volkan Bozkir's planned visit to India later this month has been postponed due to an unexpected situation&nbsp;relating to the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

Bozkir on Tuesday told reporters that he will be travelling to Bangladesh and Pakistan later this month on the invitation of the respective governments and will also be visiting Cox's Bazar in Bangladesh where he will meet with Rohingya refugees from Myanmar.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/myanmars-war-displaces-new-generation-on-remote-river-frontier-381181">Myanmar's war displaces new generation on remote river frontier</a>

Bangladesh is hosting over 1.1 million Rohingya refugees who fled Myanmar's military crackdown, often considered as "ethnic cleansing" by many rights groups.

Bozkir said that he had also planned a visit to India during his trip to South Asia but postponed it due to an "unexpected situation."

"I also wanted to go to India. It was India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, but unfortunately, an unexpected situation came out and I had to postpone the India part to a later stage. But I will absolutely make sure that I'll go to India as well," the UN General Assembly President said, referring to India's <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/coronavirus">COVID-19</a> crisis.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/indias-andhra-pradesh-covid-19-variant-n440k-is-15-times-more-virulent-382805">India's Andhra Pradesh COVID-19 variant: N440K is 15 times more virulent</a>

Asked whether the UN will be able to host a regular General Assembly session in September, he said: "It would be wrong if we make a decision now for September on how the participation will be. Will it be a hybrid format? Or will we have again 10,000 people at UN Headquarters? What happens to civil society? What happens to the bilaterals? These are all questions we have in our minds."

He said June will be a proper time to discuss with the US, the host country of the UN, and local authorities on the COVID-19 situation and the feasibility of holding the UN General Assembly.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/faucis-advice-to-india-clamp-nationwide-lockdown-start-massive-vaccination-382645">Fauci's advice to India: Clamp nationwide lockdown, start massive vaccination</a>

With New York City aiming to "fully reopen" on July 1, Bozkir said it will "give us a signal on whether we can have a different type of a high-level week than we had last September"&nbsp;when all meetings were mostly virtual with minimal in-person presence in the UN premises.

"The important thing is not to risk any people's health"&nbsp;we must absolutely go along with the mitigation measures, we must listen to what science is saying to us and we must not really open everything without any precaution.

"If I were the host country, I wouldn't have made any plans for September as of now,&nbsp;because with this pandemic, unfortunately, we are living day by day or week by week. We suddenly see something happening, like what happens in India. Nobody was expecting this suddenly to happen. It changes all the plans. So, I think it's better to start talking about it, to start discussing it, and then leave it to the science and to the local authorities," he added.

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/india-sees-record-3780-covid-19-deaths-in-1-day-382959/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

India is struggling with an unprecedented second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic with more than 3,00,000 daily new coronavirus cases being reported in the past week.

President of the UN General Assembly Volkan Bozkir's planned visit to India later this month has been postponed due to an unexpected situation relating to the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

President of the UN General Assembly Volkan Bozkir's planned visit to India later this month has been postponed due to an unexpected situation relating to the COVID-19 pandemic in the country. Bozkir on Tuesday told reporters that he will be travelling to Bangladesh and Pakistan later this month on the invitation of the respective governments and will also be visiting Cox's Bazar in Bangladesh where he will meet with Rohingya refugees from Myanmar. Also read | Myanmar's war displaces new generation on remote river frontier Bangladesh is hosting over 1.1 million Rohingya refugees who fled Myanmar's military crackdown, often considered as "ethnic cleansing" by many rights groups. Bozkir said that he had also planned a visit to India during his trip to South Asia but postponed it due to an "unexpected situation." "I also wanted to go to India. It was India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, but unfortunately, an unexpected situation came out and I had to postpone the India part to a later stage. But I will absolutely make sure that I'll go to India as well," the UN General Assembly President said, referring to India's COVID-19 crisis. Also read | India's Andhra Pradesh COVID-19 variant: N440K is 15 times more virulent Asked whether the UN will be able to host a regular General Assembly session in September, he said: "It would be wrong if we make a decision now for September on how the participation will be. Will it be a hybrid format? Or will we have again 10,000 people at UN Headquarters? What happens to civil society? What happens to the bilaterals? These are all questions we have in our minds." He said June will be a proper time to discuss with the US, the host country of the UN, and local authorities on the COVID-19 situation and the feasibility of holding the UN General Assembly. Also read | Fauci's advice to India: Clamp nationwide lockdown, start massive vaccination With New York City aiming to "fully reopen" on July 1, Bozkir said it will "give us a signal on whether we can have a different type of a high-level week than we had last September" when all meetings were mostly virtual with minimal in-person presence in the UN premises. "The important thing is not to risk any people's health" we must absolutely go along with the mitigation measures, we must listen to what science is saying to us and we must not really open everything without any precaution. "If I were the host country, I wouldn't have made any plans for September as of now, because with this pandemic, unfortunately, we are living day by day or week by week. We suddenly see something happening, like what happens in India. Nobody was expecting this suddenly to happen. It changes all the plans. So, I think it's better to start talking about it, to start discussing it, and then leave it to the science and to the local authorities," he added. India is struggling with an unprecedented second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic with more than 3,00,000 daily new coronavirus cases being reported in the past week.

UN General Assembly President Volkan Bozkir postpones India trip due to COVID-19

UN General Assembly president Volkan Bozkir on Tuesday criticised the Security Council, saying it was failing to respond to the world's biggest challenges due to "competing interests."

There has been growing criticism of the body, which has not been reformed in decades.

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/gravitas-plus-united-nations-a-redundant-body-330503/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

"The council has, on many occasions, failed to carry out its responsibility to maintain international peace and security," Bozkir, a Turkish diplomat, said at a debate on reforming the body.

"Competing interests among its members and frequent use of the veto have limited the Security Council's effectiveness. Even in some of the most urgent humanitarian crises, the council could not provide a timely and adequate response."

Earlier,&nbsp;French President Emmanuel Macron&nbsp;on&nbsp;Monday called&nbsp;for an overhaul of international cooperation mechanisms adding that the&nbsp;United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is out of ''useful solutions''.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/united-nations-security-council-out-of-useful-solutions-says-emmanuel-macron-343498" hreflang="en">United Nations Security Council out of 'useful solutions', says Emmanuel Macron</a>

Bozkir said reform of the Security Council was "an unavoidable imperative -- both challenging and essential."

Since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Security Council has held few meetings devoted to the virus.

It took more than three months to overcome the friction between the United States and China to pass a resolution on July 1 calling for more international cooperation and to support a call by the secretary-general for a ceasefire in war-torn countries to help fight the disease.

During the debate on reform, the 193 UN members discussed the right to veto, the privilege of the five permanent members of the Security Council (United States, China, Russia, France and the United Kingdom), enlarging the forum and its regional balance.

Modest expansion of council?

Russia, which has used its veto 15 times since 2011 on the Syrian dossier alone, and the US do not wish to see that power reduced.

"The United States remains open, in principle, to a modest expansion of the Security Council," said American diplomat Ngoyi Ngoyi. But "this must be pursued in a way that will not diminish the Security Council's effectiveness or its efficiency, and will not alter or expand the veto."

Deputy Russian ambassador Anna Evstigneeva argued that "ideas leading to the erosion of the prerogatives of the permanent members of the Security Council, including the right to veto, are unacceptable."

Using the veto, or even the threat of using it, "have repeatedly prevented the United Nations from becoming associated with dubious companies," she added.

Later, Chinese ambassador Zhang Jun criticized an "over-representation of developed countries" and called for a larger presence of small and medium nations, particularly African ones.

The Security Council, which can decide on international sanctions and the use of force, has 15 members. In addition to the five permanent nations, it has 10 non-permanent members elected for two-year terms.

Germany is a candidate for another permanent seat on the Council, along with Brazil, Japan, and India. Africa is seeking two spots but has yet to identify potential future beneficiaries.

UN General Assembly president Volkan Bozkir on Tuesday criticised the Security Council, saying it was failing to respond to the world's biggest challenges due to "competing interests.

UN General Assembly president Volkan Bozkir on Tuesday criticised the Security Council, saying it was failing to respond to the world's biggest challenges due to "competing interests." There has been growing criticism of the body, which has not been reformed in decades. "The council has, on many occasions, failed to carry out its responsibility to maintain international peace and security," Bozkir, a Turkish diplomat, said at a debate on reforming the body. "Competing interests among its members and frequent use of the veto have limited the Security Council's effectiveness. Even in some of the most urgent humanitarian crises, the council could not provide a timely and adequate response." Earlier, French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday called for an overhaul of international cooperation mechanisms adding that the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is out of ''useful solutions''. Also read: United Nations Security Council out of 'useful solutions', says Emmanuel Macron Bozkir said reform of the Security Council was "an unavoidable imperative -- both challenging and essential." Since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Security Council has held few meetings devoted to the virus. It took more than three months to overcome the friction between the United States and China to pass a resolution on July 1 calling for more international cooperation and to support a call by the secretary-general for a ceasefire in war-torn countries to help fight the disease. During the debate on reform, the 193 UN members discussed the right to veto, the privilege of the five permanent members of the Security Council (United States, China, Russia, France and the United Kingdom), enlarging the forum and its regional balance. Modest expansion of council? Russia, which has used its veto 15 times since 2011 on the Syrian dossier alone, and the US do not wish to see that power reduced. "The United States remains open, in principle, to a modest expansion of the Security Council," said American diplomat Ngoyi Ngoyi. But "this must be pursued in a way that will not diminish the Security Council's effectiveness or its efficiency, and will not alter or expand the veto." Deputy Russian ambassador Anna Evstigneeva argued that "ideas leading to the erosion of the prerogatives of the permanent members of the Security Council, including the right to veto, are unacceptable." Using the veto, or even the threat of using it, "have repeatedly prevented the United Nations from becoming associated with dubious companies," she added. Later, Chinese ambassador Zhang Jun criticized an "over-representation of developed countries" and called for a larger presence of small and medium nations, particularly African ones. The Security Council, which can decide on international sanctions and the use of force, has 15 members. In addition to the five permanent nations, it has 10 non-permanent members elected for two-year terms. Germany is a candidate for another permanent seat on the Council, along with Brazil, Japan, and India. Africa is seeking two spots but has yet to identify potential future beneficiaries.

Now, UN General Assembly president Volkan Bozkir assails Security Council

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UN General Assembly President Volkan Bozkir postpones India trip due to COVID-19

Now, UN General Assembly president Volkan Bozkir assails Security Council