The UN 81st General Assembly High Level Week, which brought together the leaders and high-level representatives of the United Nations (UN) member countries, ended with the speeches made yesterday.
State and government leaders from 193 UN member countries, as well as many ministers and high-level figures, especially foreign ministers, discussed the prominent topics in the world at the UN General Assembly rostrum on 22-28 September.
Within the scope of the 81st General Assembly, which was held this year with the theme "Restoring trust, managing transformation: A UN that produces results for everyone", hot topics such as the conflicts between the USA and Iran, the genocide in Gaza and the ongoing war in Ukraine, as well as global problems such as climate change, the future of artificial intelligence, development and inequality were discussed.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres spoke at the General Assembly meeting for the last time, as his 10-year, two-term term will end at the end of this year. At the end of his speech, Guterres was applauded by the delegates for several minutes.
Addressing the UN General Assembly for the 16th time this year, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan drew attention to the hot conflicts in Iran, Lebanon, Sudan and Ukraine, especially the Gaza and Palestine issue, and offered solutions to global and regional crises.
In his address, Erdoğan also discussed the need for reform in the UN Security Council to overcome the global deadlock and topics such as climate change and artificial intelligence.
During the 81st UN General Assembly, the intense meeting traffic of the Turkish delegation on the UN Climate Change Conference (COP31) to be held in Türkiye this year also attracted attention.
Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change Murat Kurum, while promoting COP31, which will be held at the Expo Center in Antalya on 9-20 November, at the UN, emphasized that they want to turn climate goals into measurable, implementable actions.
Netanyahu was protested at the UN General Assembly again this year
The protest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for whom an arrest warrant was issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC), in the UN General Assembly hall this year was among the most talked about topics during the week of the 81st UN General Assembly.
Delegations of more than 70 countries, especially Türkiye, left the General Assembly hall and protested as soon as Netanyahu took the podium.
On the other hand, while the USA did not grant visas to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and his delegation to attend the UN General Assembly meetings this year, it gave visas to Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian, the leader of the country with which it has been at war since February, and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Erakchi.
By the decision of the UN General Assembly, Palestinian President Abbas had to address the hall via pre-recorded video this year.
113 heads of state and government spoke at the UN General Assembly
UN General Assembly President Spokesperson Melissa Summers stated at the press conference held today that all member countries except Myanmar and Afghanistan made speeches at the 81st UN General Assembly this year.
“These included 113 heads of state and government, 1 crown prince, 11 vice presidents, 7 deputy prime ministers and 48 ministers,” Summers said. he said.
Summers stated that, according to preliminary data, 60 percent of those addressing the UN General Assembly talked about artificial intelligence, and three-quarters of them somehow brought up the climate issue, and that approximately 14 percent of the speakers were women, and this rate was around 12 percent last year.
Summers stated that during the week of the 81st UN General Assembly, UN General Assembly President Khalilur Rahman held a total of 95 bilateral meetings with heads of state and government, ministers and other high-level officials as of this morning.
UN Secretary-General Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric underlined at today's press conference that UN Secretary-General Guterres held a total of 147 high-level bilateral meetings.
Dujarric reported that approximately 18 thousand active accreditation cards were issued for delegates as part of the high-level participation week.
The UN General Assembly brings together leaders of member states every year
The UN General Assembly, held every September at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, brings together heads of state and government and high-level representatives from around the world.
During the high-level week of the General Assembly, where all member countries are represented, leaders convey their countries' priorities and their views on global developments from the General Assembly podium, while many bilateral and multilateral meetings are held.
In this respect, the General Assembly is one of the diplomatic platforms with the widest participation where the international community addresses global problems.
