General Assembly

Eradication of poverty and adherence to financial commitments were crucial in improving the global economic infrastructure, speakers told the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) today, as it began its general debate.

Redoubled efforts to take concrete steps forward in all disarmament processes were needed to build upon progress achieved with the recent adoption of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) heard today at the opening its general debate.

Concluding its high-level meeting on human trafficking today, General Assembly President Miroslav Lajčák (Slovakia) urged the United Nations to not let down millions of victims and survivors of human trafficking around the globe.

Describing decolonization as a complex issue spanning multiple interests, a delegate emphasized today that the United Nations must support the rights of indigenous populations over those of colonizers, as the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) began its general debate on the issue.

On 28 September, the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) elected Mohammed Hussein Bahr Aluloom, Permanent Representative of Iraq to the United Nations in New York, as Chair by acclamation.

The Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) today approved its work programme for the seventy‑second session, which covers topics ranging from the decolonization of the 17 remaining Non‑Self‑Governing Territories, through the peaceful uses of outer space to the plight of Palestinian refugees and Israel’s practices in the Occupied Arab Territories.

The First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) met today for a brief organizational meeting to elect its Chair and adopt its agenda and work programme for the seventy‑second session of the General Assembly.

Continuing its high‑level meeting on human trafficking today, speakers in the General Assembly called for more tailored, effective multilateral responses to that “heinous” crime while outlining national efforts to protect its victims and prosecute perpetrators.

Survivors of human trafficking today recounted painful stories of kidnapping, violence and rape — often the result of criminals exploiting their hopes for a better life — as the General Assembly adopted a Political Declaration aimed at combating that brutal practice.

Against a backdrop of rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula, speakers in the General Assembly today emphasized the urgent need for firm political will to advance towards the total elimination of all nuclear weapons.