UN General Assembly opens 81st high-level debate in New York
Around 130 heads of state and government will speak under the theme "Rebuilding trust, managing the transformation: United Nations that serve all".
The high-level debate of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly opens today and will run until 28 September, as world leaders gather in New York to address pressing global issues under the theme "Rebuilding trust, managing the transformation: United Nations that serve all".
About 130 heads of state and government are expected to attend in person at the UN headquarters to deliver their messages. The 81st session, which began on 8 September, is presided over by Halilur Rahman of Bangladesh, who was elected as President of the General Assembly in June and will formally open the general debate.
Speeches and sequence of addresses
After the opening by Halilur Rahman, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres will present his report on the organization's work. Following long-standing protocol, Brazil is the first member state to speak during the general debate — a tradition dating back to the 10th General Assembly in 1955, with noted exceptions in 1983 and 1984 — and today Brazil will be represented by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
The United States, as host country, occupies the second speaking slot; President Donald Trump is scheduled to address the Assembly. The Holy See (Vatican), the State of Palestine and the European Union are also invited to participate in the general debate.
On the margins of the Assembly, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with French President Emmanuel Macron in New York. Delegations are arriving amid growing concern about uncontrolled artificial intelligence and its potential risks to humanity, alongside climate shocks and rising prices that are already straining the lives of hundreds of millions.
The annual high-level gathering will also focus squarely on major conflicts — in Iran, Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Myanmar — and on the recurring question facing participants: Can leaders do anything to bring them to an end?
Photo: press material from the event
