New York, September 19 – U.S. President Joe Biden called on government leaders attending the U.N. General Assembly annual session to defend the United Nations Charter, which stands against war and any breaches of the peace, and he asked them to remain united in their support of Ukraine’s military efforts against Russia’s aggression.
With Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appearing at the U.N. annual meeting for the first time, Biden said: “Russia believes that the world will grow weary and allow it to brutalize Ukraine without consequence. But I ask you this: If we abandon the core principles of the U.N. Charter to appease an aggressor, can any member state feel confident that they are protected? If we allow Ukraine to be carved up, is the independence of any nation secure?”
“The answer is no. We must stand up to this naked aggression today to deter other would-be aggressors tomorrow. That is why the United States together with our Allies and partners around the world will continue to stand with the brave people of Ukraine as they defend their sovereignty and territorial integrity – and their freedom.”
Biden emphasized the importance of institutions such as the United Nations and international organizations devoted to providing humanitarian and health assistance to developing countries.
“We will not retreat from the values that make us strong,” Biden said. “We will defend democracy — our best tool to meet the challenges that we face around the world. And we’re working to show how democracy can deliver in ways that matter to people’s lives.”
“The United States seeks a more secure, more prosperous, more equitable world for all people, because we know our future is bound up with yours. And no nation can meet the challenges of today alone,” he said.
Turning to climate disasters, Biden pointed to record breaking heatwaves in the United States and China, wildfires ravaging North America and Southern Europe, drought in the Horn of Africa and the tragic flooding in Libya that has killed thousands of people.
“Taken together these snapshots tell an urgent story of what awaits us if we fail to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and begin to climate-proof our world. From day one of my Administration the United States has treated this crisis as the existential threat that it is, not only to us, but to all of humanity,” he said.
Biden was one of dozens of heads of state addressing the 193-nation assembly’s political debate opening on September 19. Biden was also the only government leader among the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council to address the assembly while the other four leaders from the United Kingdom, France, China and Russia failed to show up.
Zelenskyy told the assembly session that Russia, in addition to threatening Ukraine with nuclear weapons, has been weaponizing global food and energy markets, and using them “not only against our country, but all of yours as well.” He said Russia has blocked Ukrainian ports in the Black and Azov seas since beginning of the war 19 months ago and also ports on the Danube River.
“It is a clear Russian attempt to weaponize the food shortage on the global market, in exchange for recognition of some, if not all, of the captured territories.”
“Nukes are not the scariest thing now. Mass destruction is gaining momentum. The aggressor is weaponizing many other things … things that are being used not only against our country but also yours as well,” he said. “There are many conventions against weapons but none against weaponization … of global food supplies and energy.”
The U.N. said 145 presidents and prime ministers are among the list of 196 speakers in the assembly session from September 19 to 26.
In his address opening the session, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres
renewed a call for abiding by the U.N. Charter. “When countries break those pledges, they create a world of insecurity for everyone,” he said, stressing that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has serious implications for everyone worldwide.
“We must not relent in working for peace – a just peace in line with the UN Charter and international law. And even while fighting rages, we must pursue every avenue to ease the suffering of civilians in Ukraine and beyond,” he said.
Human suffering is at the highest point now with ongoing conflicts and natural disasters and while the needs are rising, funding is drying up, forcing the U.N. to make massive cuts in its humanitarian operations, Guterres said. (By J. Tuyet Nguyen)
United Nations correspondent journalists – United Nations correspondent journalists – United Nations correspondent journalists – United Nations journalism articles – United Nations journalism articles – United Nations journalism articles – United Nations News – United Nations News – United Nations News