At a time when humanity is facing an unprecedented series of crises, some 150 leaders are expected to gather this week in New York for the UN General Assembly, with countries remaining deeply divided over Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
«Our world is hurt by war, affected by climate chaos, tainted by hatred, shrouded in the shame of poverty and inequalities,» UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres denounced a few days earlier.
But geostrategic divisions «that have never been so great at least since the Cold War (...) paralyze the global response to these dramatic challenges», he added, calling on countries to «come together» to find solutions.
However, there is little hope for unity, as the discussions about the appearance at the General Assembly of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a taped message proved.
Because of the covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, some of the leaders' speeches at the General Assembly were delivered via video message. This year, the usual rules apply again: to be eligible to address the General Assembly, leaders must be present. However, after a special vote, Zelenski was allowed to send a video message.
Russia immediately denounced «the politicisation of a procedural issue».
Although he would have been the «star» of the General Assembly if he had travelled to New York, even via video, Zelensky's speech «will attract a thousand times more attention than most speeches by other leaders who will be present’, commented Richard Gowan, an analyst at the International Crisis Group.
But he warned that «many non-Western political officials accuse the West of focusing on Ukraine».
«Countries are concerned that while we are focusing on Ukraine, we are not paying enough attention to other crises on the planet. This is not the case,» assured US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield.
«The world is still spinning»
«The world is still spinning. We cannot ignore what is happening in the rest of the world,» he said, emphasizing the food crisis, a topic that will be addressed at many events.
The US is co-organising with the EU and the African Union a conference on food security on the margins of the UN General Assembly, and there will also be a ministerial-level meeting on the Global Plan of Action for covid-19, as well as a conference on the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.
Moreover, developing countries, which are less responsible for global warming but often the first victims of its effects, are tired of action to tackle climate change often taking a back seat.
«We have no time to waste,» said Antigua and Barbuda Ambassador Walton Webson, president of the Association of Small Island States (AOSIS), who hopes for «commitments» of funding.
Two months before the COP27 climate conference in Egypt, Guterres is not going to miss the opportunity to stress the importance of taking immediate action in his opening speech of the General Assembly on Tuesday and during the closed-door round tables for «frank talks» with some leaders.
Before the leaders’ speeches begin on Tuesday, a session on education is to be held tomorrow, Monday, but with fewer leaders attending the funeral of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II.
Although the leaders of most of the world's countries are returning to the General Assembly this year - with the notable absences of Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping - some health restrictions remain in place: delegations have been reduced in size and fewer media outlets have been given permission to cover the event. At the same time, the use of masks is mandatory.
