Welcome back to This Week @UN: UNGA79!! Pact for the Future; Biden’s goodbye; daily recaps. Plus: Lebanon; SecGen’s mood.
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• We worked nearly round the clock during what was by far the most grueling UNGA we’ve ever experienced as the violent backdrop of wars was felt keenly at the gathering, especially the escalations in Lebanon at the week’s end and the assassination of the Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. Security in the UN was extreme, making it difficult for media to move around and gain access to VIPs and even open meetings. Nevertheless, we covered the big-power speeches, the men at war and the voices not normally heard, aiming for a balance to reflect the real world.
Our reporting featured an exclusive on Sudan as well as stories on Biden’s farewell at the UN, the standout speech (Meryl Streep, naturally), the drama behind the UN’s Pact for the Future, the growing reparations movement and another deeply impressive woman outside Hollywood: Hello, Barbados!
We produced video clips by Femi (aka Olusanya Babafemi, in Lagos) to capture the intense moments during UNGA79. And we offered a nightly recap with Vanessa Frazier, the envoy for Malta, which is a member of the Security Council. Through interviews with Laura Kirkpatrick, Ambassador Frazier provided insights into each day’s three-ring circus. (To view the video clips, visit our social media pages.)
To achieve our journalistic feats at UNGA79, we need your donations (big, medium, small) to cover the extra costs we incurred to pay our brilliant team of writers, social media gurus and videographers: Damilola Banjo, Arthur Bassas, Femi, Anton Ferreira, Maria Luisa Gambale, Maurizio Guerrero, Laura Kirkpatrick, Joe Penney and Stephen Schlesinger. Our special thanks to John Penney, who got up at dawn to arrive early at the UN to secure a spot to photograph the world leaders as they streamed into the General Assembly. We are always grateful for your readership and support. –– DULCIE LEIMBACH, EDITOR
From PassBlue this week:
• UNGA79: Special Report: Can the UN Pact for the Future Save the World Now?, by Maria Luisa Gambale
• UNGA79: Special Report: Biden’s Bittersweet Goodbye at the UN, by Stephen Schlesinger
• UNGA79: Special Report: South Africa; Brazil; Argentina; Afghan Cats, by Anton Ferreira
• UNGA79: Special Report: Ukraine; France; Senegal; Venezuela, by Joe Penney
• UNGA79: Special Report: Palestine; Kenya; Finland; Reparations, by Maria Luisa Gambale
• UNGA79: Special Report: Netanyahu of Israel; Mottley of Barbados, by Anton Ferreira
• UNGA79: Special Report: UK, China, Mali, by Damilola Banjo
Thumbnail descriptions:
• UNGA79: Special Report: Can the UN Pact for the Future Save the World Now?, by Maria Luisa Gambale: After at least a year of intense negotiations, the General Assembly agreed by consensus to the Pact of the Future, the blueprint to “reboot multilateralism for a safer, more peaceful and prosperous world,” amid the backdrop of three major wars: Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine. PassBlue writer Gambale weighs the contrasting expectations and reactions to the ambitious agreement and if this show of unity could turn into action that the world desperately needs.
• UNGA79: Special Report: Biden’s Bittersweet Goodbye at the UN, Stephen Schlesinger: Schlesinger breaks down US President Joe Biden’s final address to the UN General Assembly, where he attempted to paint his foreign policy legacy as both a loyal continuation and an example of progressive innovation for the organization’s basic tenets, highlighting his administration’s defense of Ukraine against Russia. Biden’s speech, Schlesinger writes, “represents his efforts to remind Americans of the importance of the UN in curtailing the turmoil in the world and bringing about the ideal vistas that we all seek in our lives.”
• UNGA79: Special Report: South Africa; Brazil; Argentina; Afghan Cats, by Anton Ferreira: In PassBlue’s Tuesday recap of the General Assembly session, South Africa reminds UN member states about its genocide case against Israel for its siege of Gaza; actor Meryl Streep’s speech on the Taliban’s oppression of Afghan women goes viral; Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva calls for major UN reform; and Argentine President Javier Milei chainsaws the UN’s “ideological agenda.”
• UNGA79: Special Report: Ukraine; France; Senegal; Venezuela, by Joe Penney: In PassBlue’s Wednesday recap of UNGA79, Ukraine slams Brazil and China’s peace proposals as President Volodymyr Zelensky continues to campaign for NATO permission to strike Russia inside its borders; French President Emmanuel Macron attempts to take the reins on a 21-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon; newly elected Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye announces himself to the organization; and Venezuela accuses the US of carrying out “continued coup” attempts on the South American country.
• UNGA: Special Report: Palestine; Kenya; Finland; Reparations, by Maria Luisa Gambale: Mahmoud Abbas, the 88-year-old president of the state of Palestine, delved into the Gaza war, saying: “Israel was delusional to think they can get away with their crimes” and criticized the US for obstructing Security Council resolutions on a ceasefire three times.
Kenyan President William Ruto, 57, highlighted the challenges facing the UN and touched on his country’s security force working in Haiti.
Finnish President Alexander Stubb presented sweeping proposals for UN Security Council reform and took veiled stabs at Russia, to which it shares a long border.
African and Caribbean leaders are intensifying calls for righting the historical wrongs done to Africa and people of African descent. At an event held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo, 80, and Prime Minister Mia Mottley, 58, of Barbados led the demands for reparations.
• UNGA: Special Report: US to Pressure UAE to Stop Backing RSF Rebels, Sudan Leader Says, by Joe Penney and Damilola Banjo: The writers unpack the US’ reported pledge to the Sudanese President and head of Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan that it will “pressure the United Arab Emirates to stop providing weapons to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF),” who are accused of committing genocide in Sudan’s civil war. “Why has the international system not taken any firm or dissuasive measures vis-à-vis this group and those who support it, despite everything that’s been done?,” Burhan asked the General Assembly separately, in his speech on Thursday.
• UNGA: Special Report: Netanyahu of Israel; Mottley of Barbados, by Anton Ferreira: A defiant Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used his speech to the UN General Assembly Friday to drill home his refrain that Iran is the global ground zero of evil, that Israel’s opponents are anti-Semites and that Hamas and Hezbollah will be shown no mercy.
In a wide-ranging speech packed with detail, Prime Minister Mia Mottley of Barbados, a name on many lips as a possible candidate for UN secretary-general in 2027, delved into climate change and reform of the international financial architecture, among a long list of topics and specific calls to action.
UN spokesperson’s two briefings this week:
Monday, Sept. 23
• Spokesperson’s briefing: Secretary-General António Guterres expressed “grave concern” for the “large number” of civilian casualties, the “thousands of displaced persons” and the safety of civilians and UN staff affected by the escalating violence along the Israel-Lebanon border. He called on all “involved parties in this conflict must honour their responsibilities to protect civilians and ensure the safety and security of all UN personnel and assets” and urged Israel and Lebanon to seek “de-escalation” and a “diplomatic solution.” [UPDATE, Sept. 27: In less than a week, at least 700 people have died, the UN says, thousands have been injured and nearly 120,000 people have been displaced. Since October 2023, more than 1,500 civilians have been killed in Lebanon and 200,000 people have been forced to flee their homes]
Friday, Sept. 27
• Spokesperson’s briefing: A reporter asked: “So the week started off very badly. As we know, in the shadow of war, world leaders began to gather. Now, towards the end of the week, things have got worse. What is the Secretary-General’s mood?”
“I would say the Secretary-General’s mood is positive given how we started, right?” Stéphane Dujarric replied. “With the adoption of the Pact for the Future and the way Member States rallied around it. This GA has been, I would say, a very serious one, a very intense one. At the same time, he remains very focused and alarmed by the developments we’re seeing on the ground right now that are in themselves not linked to the General Assembly.”
Arthur Bassas is a researcher and writer who graduated from St. Andrews in Scotland, majoring in international relations and terrorism. He lives in Brooklyn, N.Y., and speaks English and French.
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