Oct 02, 2018, at 08:38 am
New York, Oct 2 (IBNS): The United Nations needs to adapt to meet the challenges facing the world, Thailand’s Deputy Foreign Minister Virasakdi Futrakul told the General Assembly on Monday, endorsing Secretary General António Guterres’s efforts to make the Organization more effective.
Oct 02, 2018, at 08:29 am
New York, Oct 2 (IBNS): In spite of the criticism levelled against the United Nations, there is no other such platform for cooperation or a multilateral mechanism based on “equal and respectful attitude towards each and every country and their needs,” the foreign minister of Belarus told the General Assembly.
At UN, Somali Minister outlines country’s ongoing transformation; urges new partnerships
Sep 30, 2018, at 04:49 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS): Even though Somalia has made “huge strides” in political and economic transformation, the country continues to grapple with terrorism, the nation’s Foreign Minister told world leaders gathered at the United Nations General Assembly on Saturday.
Sep 30, 2018, at 04:42 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS): From the podium of the General Assembly, Niger – victim of the quadruple scourge of climate change, migration, poverty and terrorism – gave a ringing endorsement of the United Nations on Saturday as the “irreplaceable” Organization capable of resolving these and a host of other problems.
Sep 30, 2018, at 04:40 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS): Osman Mohammed Saleh, Eritrea’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, told the United Nations General Assembly that the recently signed Peace Agreement between his country and Ethiopia “brings to an end a dark, two-decades-old, a chapter of war, constant tension, and strife.”
Regional, global solidarity indispensable to achieve sustainable development, says Lao PDR minister
Sep 30, 2018, at 04:37 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS): National governments and the international community must work “hand-in-hand” to realize the lofty goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Foreign Minister of Laos People’s Democratic Republic said at the United Nations General Assembly on Saturday.
UN remains only forum that can bring global solutions to global problems, Senegal tells Assembly
Sep 30, 2018, at 04:34 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS): At a time of growing pessimism over the effectiveness of the United Nations, the international community must overcome political and ideological differences to strengthen the world Organization to address the multiple problems, from sustainable development and development aid to climate change and the fight against terrorism, Senegal told the UN General Assembly on Saturday.
Burundi should no longer be on UN Security Council’s agenda, says Foreign Minister
Sep 30, 2018, at 04:29 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS): The United Nations Security Council should “have the courage to remove Burundi from its agenda”, Foreign Minister Ezekiel Nibigira said on Saturday from the rostrum of the General Assembly.
Trust with US must be built before Korean Peninsula can be reunited, DPRK insists at UN
Sep 30, 2018, at 04:25 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS): Despite taking goodwill measures over the past year, including dismantling a nuclear test site, there was “no way” the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea would unilaterally disarm itself without rebuilding trust with the United States, DPRK’s Foreign Minister told the United Nations on Saturday.
‘We cannot abandon’ rules-based world order, Singapore urges in UN speech
Sep 30, 2018, at 04:22 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS): Multilateralism may have occasionally been “oversold as a panacea”, but the world cannot abandon the rules-based world order which has brought peace and prosperity during the lifetime of the United Nations, Singapore’s Foreign Minister told the United Nations General Assembly on Saturday.
‘Lack of trust’ among nations threatens progress, rules-based order, Suriname Minister tells UN
Sep 30, 2018, at 04:20 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS): Suriname agrees with the United Nations Secretary-General that a lack of trust among countries is the fundamental issue confronting the international community, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Suriname told UN General Assembly on Saturday.
Sep 30, 2018, at 04:17 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS): The Philippines, under the leadership of President Rodrigo Duterte, is on track to reverse its decline towards becoming a “Narco State”, or one that is being “held hostage” by the rich and powerful, said its Foreign Affairs minister at the United Nations General Assembly’s annual debate on Saturday.
Sep 30, 2018, at 04:14 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS): Welcoming the growing attention the world is paying to the Pacific Ocean, Rimbink Pato, Papua New Guinea’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, urged the international community to ensure that the Ocean becomes a “zone of cooperation, of stability and security, of pristine beauty and prosperity,” and expressed his hope that the it lives up to its name: “the Ocean of Peace.”
At UN, Syria slams US for ‘supporting terrorism’, thanks Russia for cooperation
Sep 30, 2018, at 04:12 pm
Denouncing the United States for supporting terrorism and war crimes in his conflict-torn country, Syrian Deputy Prime Minister Walid Al-Moualem reported to the United Nations General Assembly on Saturday that the seven-year war is almost over, calling all those opposing President Bashar al-Assad terrorists.
UN Chief praises efforts to reduce tension on Korean Peninsula
Sep 30, 2018, at 04:02 pm
New York, Sept 30 (IBNS): UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, has welcomed the latest efforts made towards building trust and reducing military tension on the Korean Peninsula, following his meeting with North Korea’s Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho on Friday, during High-Level week of the General Assembly.
Up to 50 million accounts breached by hackers: Facebook
Sep 29, 2018, at 08:22 am
New York, Sept 29 (IBNS): Social media giant Facebook has said that up to 50 million of its accounts were breached by hackers recently.
Sep 29, 2018, at 08:10 am
New York, Sept 29 (IBNS): Addressing the United Nations General Assembly’s annual debate, a minister from Myanmar “resolutely rejected” an International Criminal Court (ICC) ruling in connection with the country’s restive Rakhine state, underscoring that the tribunal has “no jurisdiction over Myanmar whatsoever.”
Malaysian Prime Minister paints dismal world picture, underscores need for UN reform
Sep 29, 2018, at 08:07 am
New York, Sept 29 (IBNS): In the 15 years since he last addressed the General Assembly, little has changed in the world and it is in far worse shape now than it was then, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad lamented in his speech to world leaders gathered at the United Nations.
Sep 29, 2018, at 08:04 am
New York, Sept 29 (IBNS): All parts of the United Nations “must embrace this opportunity to change and create real improvements to the benefit of the people,” Ulla Tørnæs, Denmark’s Minister for Development Cooperation, said on Friday, stressing that the world body’s Member States had thrown their support behind the Secretary-General's ambitions reform agenda and now it was time to make those proposals a reality.
Sep 29, 2018, at 08:01 am
New York, Sept 29 (IBNS): Germany’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Heiko Maas, outlined on Friday at the United Nations General Assembly a list of crises in the world, singling out “the crisis of multilateralism” as being at the root, frustrating solutions.
Russia’s Lavrov denounces from UN podium West’s ‘brute force’ pursuit of domination
Sep 29, 2018, at 07:58 am
New York, Sept 29 (IBNS): Denouncing their use of “political blackmail, economic pressure, and brute force,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov mounted the podium of the United Nations General Assembly on Friday to accuse Western States of seeking to retain their self-proclaimed status as ‘world leaders.’
Uphold UN Charter, reject unilateralism, declares Cambodia’s Prime Minister
Sep 29, 2018, at 07:55 am
New York, Sept 29 (IBNS): Addressing world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly’s general debate on Friday, Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia described the world as a fragile, unpredictable, and complicated place where countries “big and small must respect one another.”
‘Not in my backyard’ attitude will not resolve crises – Greek Prime Minister
Sep 29, 2018, at 07:52 am
New York, Sept 29 (IBNS): Recalling the challenges confronting Greece not so long ago, and the calls at the time from various quarters urging unilateral steps and disengagement with the international community, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras underscored at the United Nations on Friday the importance of collective action and wisdom to overcome complex problems.
UN officials urge support as Darfur attempts to ‘turn the page’ from conflict to peace
Sep 29, 2018, at 07:49 am
New York, Sept 29 (IBNS): Stating that while the Darfur region of Sudan, which for years was torn by strife and displacement, is now increasingly stable, top United Nations officials on Friday urged continued international support to ensure that hard-won gains take hold.
Sep 29, 2018, at 07:45 am
New York, Sept 29 (IBNS): Regularly threatened, attacked and killed, journalists are also being imprisoned in record numbers around the world, an event on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly highlighted on Friday. These practices undermine not only the fundamental human rights of the reporters themselves, but also the public’s right to receive and impart information, rights experts warn.
At UN, China says it will not be ‘blackmailed’ or yield to trade pressure
Sep 29, 2018, at 07:41 am
New York, Sept 29 (IBNS): International trade is “win-win by nature” and should not be a zero-sum game, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi told world leaders at the United Nations today, saying that China “will not be blackmailed or yield to pressure.”
Unfair, misapplied global policies stack odds against island States, Saint Lucia tells UN Assembly
Sep 29, 2018, at 07:39 am
New York, Sept 29 (IBNS): At the United Nations General Assembly on Friday, Allen Michael Chastanet, Prime Minister of Saint Lucia, painted a dire picture of the challenges natural hazards pose for small island developing States and middle-income countries, saying that while the international community widely acknowledges them, “little or nothing changes.”
South Sudan’s ‘relentless conflict’ leaves almost 60 per cent suffering desperate food crisis
Sep 29, 2018, at 07:36 am
New York, Sept 29 (IBNS):“Relentless conflict” in South Sudan has now left more than six million people facing crisis levels of hunger, three UN agencies have said, amid ongoing efforts to deliver aid to the war-weary country.
Sep 29, 2018, at 07:33 am
New York, Sept 29 (IBNS): At the United Nations General Assembly’s annual debate on Friday, Albanian President, Ilir Meta told world leaders that “we continue to see the UN as a multilateral instrument through which peaceful international order is safeguarded.”
Conflict can lead to positive change, ‘if we learn from it’, South Sudan tells UN Assembly
Sep 29, 2018, at 07:30 am
New York, Sept 29 (IBNS): Drawing lessons from conflict – particularly the causes and ultimate resolution – can be a vehicle for positive change, South Sudan’s Vice-President told world leaders gathered at the United Nations General Assembly, highlighting his country’s efforts to ensure lasting peace.