The only way to ensure the world was safe from nuclear weapons was to eliminate them entirely, speakers said at a high-level meeting of the General Assembly held to commemorate and promote the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.
While the United Nations had been founded on the belief that States could solve problems collectively, the time had come to move in a new direction, the General Assembly heard today, as speakers underlined the need to embrace a new era of engagement based on common needs, innovative ideas and mutual respect.
With 65 million people displaced and on the move, several European countries discussed myriad ways to deal with the unprecedented phenomenon by defeating terrorism, bringing human traffickers to justice, while others called on Member States to make the better choice between engagement and isolation as the General Assembly continued its annual debate today.
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development had unprecedented potential to fulfil the aspirations that had motivated the Declaration on the Right to Development, which remained critical to the present day, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the General Assembly today, as it convened a high-level meeting to commemorate the Declaration’s thirtieth anniversary.
The General Assembly moved into day three of its general debate today with a push to elevate the Palestinian legal and political leadership in the world body so as to allow for their chairing of committees and international groups, the ability to sponsor resolutions, and to proclaim 2017 as the International Year to end the Israeli Occupation.
World leaders gathered at a high-level meeting on antimicrobial resistance today committed to concerted action to address the phenomenon, which many warned could lead to significant development backslides and up to 10 million deaths annually by 2050 if left unchecked.
Focusing on international peace and security, world leaders stressed the need to curb terrorist attacks, end ongoing conflict, resolve the refugee crisis and reform the Security Council, as the General Assembly continued its annual debate today.
Amid “gulfs of mistrust” that had divided citizens from Governments, slowed the delivery of life-saving aid to millions in need and fomented divisions of “us” and “them”, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon opened the seventy-first annual debate of the General Assembly today, pressing world leaders to commit to new heights of solidarity in forging a better future.
The General Assembly adopted the New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants today, thereby mapping a route towards a collective, rights-based response to record displacement numbers around the world.
Acting on the recommendations of its General Committee, the General Assembly this morning adopted the work programme and agenda for its seventy-first session, which contained 173 items, and endorsed the recommendation that its general debate be held from 20 to 24 September 2016.
