This year’s general debate opened with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva addressing the UN membership.
Over six days, 190 Member States stormed the iconic green marble stage, highlighting the pressing challenges facing the international community and the need to overcome global unity. Three observers also spoke.
As these leaders tackled global challenges, Philémon Yang said: Chairman of the General Meetingclosed the meeting with A powerful reminder of the ongoing conflicts and the urgent need for peace.
The conflicts raging in Gaza, Lebanon, Sudan and Ukraine are unfortunately not an exhaustive list, he said.
“In recent days, the world has seen an extremely dramatic escalation of violence between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. That escalation threatens to cause war throughout the Middle East.”
“This has to stop, and it has to stop now. The world must not allow all-out war to take place in this unstable region,” he stressed, calling on all parties – Israel, Hamas and Hezbollah – to urgently agree to a ceasefire.
“And that all remaining hostages be released immediately and unharmed.”
Moving forward together
Mr. Yang emphasized that only by working together can the international community face and overcome the complex and daunting challenges ahead.
“Only through dialogue, listening and collective action can we find solutions that benefit us all.”
He emphasized that the theme for the 79th session – Unity in diversity, for the promotion of peace, sustainable development and human dignity for everyone, everywhere – is not just a guiding principle, it is a call to action.
“The theme reminds us that our strength lies in our diversity and our ability to unite stakeholders around our common goals,” he said.
“Let us all move forward together in this spirit of unity and shared responsibility. Let us continue our work, with the clear goal of building a peaceful, just and dignified future for all.”