UNGA formally opens today with Ukraine crisis, global hunger in spotlight
UNGA
The UN General Assembly formally begins Tuesday in person after the pandemic disruption, with a plethora of crises on the plate, especially the war in Ukraine. Some 150 world leaders will descend on New York for a week of diplomacy, with all required to come in person to speak. However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been granted an exception as he leads the fight against Russian invaders.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, speaking ahead of the summit, said that the world's divisions "are the widest they have been since at least the Cold War".
"Our world is blighted by war, battered by climate chaos, scarred by hate and shamed by poverty, hunger and inequality," Guterres said.
"As fractures deepen and trust evaporates, we need to come together around solutions."
Also Read |Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky allowed to give virtual speech at UNGA
For the two previous years, the UNGA meet has been a subdued affair with leaders allowed to send in videos.
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The General Assembly voted Friday to let Zelensky speak by video. Seven nations voted against including Russia, saying that the right should be extended to all leaders, with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as well as Chinese President Xi Jinping, not planning to travel to New York.
Richard Gowan, who follows the United Nations for the International Crisis Group, said that Zelensky's speech will "get 1,000 times more attention than most in-person speeches by other leaders."
"But Zelensky has to be careful. A lot of non-Western politicians are resentful of the West's focus on Ukraine and worry that the war is distracting international attention from issues like the global food crisis," he said.
The US ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said that despite discussions on Ukraine, "it will not be the only thing that we're dealing with."
"We cannot ignore the rest of the world and what is happening in the rest of the world, the impact of climate change, the impact of the pandemic, conflicts elsewhere in the world," she said.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday will co-chair a summit on food security with the African Union, European Union and Spain as high global prices have increased hunger across the world. Russia's invasion of Ukraine has contributed to the problem immensely.
(With inputs from agencies)
