Plenary

The General Assembly’s three-day high-level plenary meeting on HIV/AIDS concluded today amid calls for redoubled efforts and greater funding to eradicate the epidemic by 2030, as called for in the Sustainable Development Goals.

With 2 million people newly infected with HIV/AIDS last year and more than 20 million still lacking antiretroviral treatment, eradicating the disease by 2030 would require the right mix of prevention, treatment and care policies, speakers in the General Assembly said today amid calls for continued international support to complement national funding.

The General Assembly today opened a three-day high-level meeting on ending AIDS with the adoption, without a vote, of a Political Declaration calling for urgent action and intensified efforts to ensure that the global response to HIV and AIDS left no one behind.

The General Assembly recognized today the right of return of all internally displaced persons and refugees in Georgia and their descendants, regardless of ethnicity, to their homes throughout that country, including Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia.

Emphasizing that justice was a fundamental building block of sustainable peace, the General Assembly today adopted a consensus resolution welcoming the report of the International Criminal Court for 2014/2015 and encouraging further dialogue between that institution and the United Nations.

Concluding a two-day high-level thematic debate today, speakers in the General Assembly urged greater political will and the strengthening of partnerships to swiftly put in place improvements to the international peace and security architecture proposed recently by key United Nations panels.

Identifying key threats and engaging in a strategic reflection about today’s challenges to international peace and security, speakers discussed the means available and institutions required for an effective collective security architecture as the General Assembly convened a high-level thematic debate on the topic.

Stressing that sustaining peace was an inherently political process requiring coherent, international coordination and support, the General Assembly adopted a wide-ranging resolution today aimed at improving the United Nations peacebuilding architecture before holding a day-long debate on the subject.

Speakers took stock today of lessons learned in nuclear safety and the state of recovery of the Chernobyl power plant, as the General Assembly marked the thirtieth anniversary of the deadly accident.

Outlining early actions and evolving plans to achieve the ambitious 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, world leaders called for tangible climate action, the eradication of poverty and bolstered development financing as the General Assembly convened a high-level thematic debate on the Agenda’s implementation today.