General Assembly: No name

Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks to the General Assembly on Pakistan floods, in New York today:

General Assembly delegates today extended the Organization’s support and sympathy to the Government and people of Pakistan with the unanimous adoption of a resolution that emphasizes the need to help the South-East Asian nation rebuild from devastating rains that left a third of the country under water.

It was supremely illogical that any State would court mutually assured destruction unless that “apocalyptic” scenario of annihilating several hundred million people beyond the theatre of war was the goal, the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) heard today as it continued its general debate.

Globalization must go hand in hand with increased cooperation in science and technology, United Nations experts and delegates told the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) today as it took up information and communications technologies (ICT) for sustainable development as well as globalization and interdependence.

Impoverished children and those displaced by conflict or climate change continue to bear the brunt of post-pandemic economic crises and global conflicts, speakers told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, as it took up the rights of children.

Underscoring the need to uphold the rule of law when introducing measures to respond to global emergencies or incorporating new technology into justice systems, speakers warned of the potential to erode human rights and fundamental freedoms, as the Sixth Committee continued its debate on the rule of law at the national and international levels today.

Petitioners on the long-standing question of Western Sahara addressed the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) for a second day today, with their statements reflecting opposing stances on Morocco’s claim of sovereignty over the Non-Self-Governing Territory.

The world is in the midst of multidimensional macroeconomic crises and urgently requires reform of the international financial system to ensure COVID‑19 recovery and sustainable development, United Nations experts and Member States warned today as the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) took up the issue.

Delegates stressed the need to address barriers to women’s human rights and empowerment, including female genital mutilation, obstetric fistula, gaps in female political representation and limited access to economic production, as the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) continued its debate today on the advancement of women.

Speakers underscored the importance of international cooperation in ensuring criminal accountability of United Nations officials and experts on mission, while also highlighting pre-deployment training and the role of women peacekeepers in preventing acts of sexual exploitation and abuse, as the Sixth Committee took up the Secretary-General’s reports on the matter.