General debate of the sixty-ninth session of the United Nations General Assembly

The General Debate of the sixty-ninth session of the United Nations General Assembly commenced on 24 September 2014 and ended on 1 October 2014. Leaders from a number of member states addressed the UNGA.

General Debate of the sixty-ninth session of the United Nations General Assembly
24 September – 1 October 2014
General Assembly hall at United Nations Headquarters, New York City
Host country United Nations
Venue(s)United Nations Headquarters
CitiesNew York City, United States
ParticipantsUnited Nations Member States
PresidentSam Kutesa
Websitegadebate.un.org/en/sessions-archive/69

Organisation and subjects

The order of speakers is given first to member states, then observer states and supranational bodies. Any other observers entities will have a chance to speak at the end of the debate, if they so choose. Speakers will be put on the list in the order of their request, with special consideration for ministers and other government officials of similar or higher rank. According to the rules in place for the General Debate, the statements should be in of the United Nations official languages of Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian or Spanish, and will be translated by the United Nations translators. Each speaker is requested to provide 20 advance copies of their statements to the conference officers to facilitate translation and to be presented at the podium. Though there is no time limit for speeches, a voluntary guideline of 15 minutes is requested.[1][2] The chosen theme for the debate is "Delivering on and Implementing a Transformative post-2015 Development Agenda."[3]

Speaking schedule

The rest of the speaking schedule in the General Assembly Chamber is as follows:

24 September
Morning schedule[4]
Afternoon schedule[4]

25 September
Morning schedule[5]
Afternoon schedule[5]

26 September
Morning schedule[6]
Afternoon schedule[6]

27 September
Morning schedule[7]
Afternoon schedule

29 September
Morning schedule[7]
Afternoon schedule

30 September
Morning schedule[7]
  •  Suriname – Foreign Minister Winston Lackin
  •  Eritrea – Foreign Minister Osman Mohammed Saleh
  •  Oman – Foreign Minister Yousef Bin Al-Alawi Bin Abdulla
  •  Belarus – Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei
  •  Belize – Foreign Minister Wilfred Elrington
  •  Barbados – Foreign Minister Maxine Pamela Ometa McClean
  •  Nicaragua – Foreign Minister Samuel Santos López
  •  Maldives – Foreign Minister Mohamed Waheed
  •  Bahamas – Foreign Minister Frederick A. Mitchell
  •  Bhutan – Foreign Minister Lyonpo Rinzin Dorje
  •  St. Lucia – Foreign Minister Alva Romanus Baptiste
  •  Papua New Guinea – Foreign Minister Rimbink Pato
  •  Ecuador – Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Leonardo Arizaga
  •  Benin – Permanent Representative Jean-Francis Régis Zinsou
  •  Solomon Islands – Permanent Representative Collin Beck
  •  Mauritius – Permanent Representative Milan Jaya Nyamrajsingh Meettarbhan
  •  Paraguay – Permanent Representative José Antonio Dos Santos
  •  Cape Verde – Foreign Minister Jorge Alberto Silva Borges

Right of Reply

Member states have the option to reply to comments on the day (or even to the days prior), but are limited to 10 minutes for the first response and five minutes for the second response. All speeches are made from the floor, as opposed to the podium for the General Debate.

Ukraine thanked other member states for support amidst the War in Donbass. It said it had provided personalised multimedia albums about the situation in the country and the need to maintain territorial integrity. It was surprised by statements from Russia saying the latter were trying to convince others about the "occupation of Crimea" which it claimed was an aggressive action instead of a reaction to the actions of the West. The delegation alleged that the truth was supposedly that Ukraine had nothing to do with the European Union or the West, including the United States, but that Russian barbarism caused the actions in Ukraine. Russia then "grabbed" Crimea and now resorts to some historical reasoning while violating international law. Instead it said the Kremlin launched the "brutal war" not against the West but Ukraine, which is weak and whose budget was shamelessly spoilt by the "corrupt regime" that was ousted earlier in the year. They said that Ukraine is a part of the E.U. family and is sovereign, democratic and in concern for human rights. The delegate said a UN resolution on the non-interference in states was adopted by the UNGA long time ago and was in 1981 it upheld the resolution which called for refraining from intervention directed against another state. The delegation concluded that it was time to start respecting the decisions of the UNGA and binding norms of international law. Finally, despite the aggressive action by Russia against Ukraine the people of the country shared commonalities.

Russia responded in saying that was just heard from Ukraine were unjustified accusations aimed at Russia. It is thus regrettable that Ukraine is striving to use "this high rostrum of the UN...to advance its ideas and perceptions that are far from the truth. The rhetoric of the Ukrainian delegation...not aligned to...[reality]." Russia's view to the events in Ukraine had been laid out earlier and does need to be repeated except that it seeks to. reestablish peace on the basis of a broad dialogue which Russia will assist in.

Closing remarks

President Sam Kutesa closed the General Debate for the year in summation of the comments. He said that the past week has been used to "share hopes and visions of the future," including the "challenges confronting us." He thanked each and every speaker: 117 heads of state and government, 3 vice president's, 56 ministers, 27 chairs of delegations and 1 head of state/observer state; this has indicated the importance attached to the organization and the event.

The topics focused on the theme of the debate by many speakers, particularly to build on momentum so as to provide tangible benefits. Several speakers also called for addressed the need for more global commitments. Yet other topics included: many calls for a fair global trading regime and better global economic governance; peace and security issues that are prominent, including the many speakers who talked of increased threats by "terrorists" like ISIS, Al Qaeda, Al Shabaab and Boko Haram which indicated a need to such groups; there were calls to optimise synergy between the UN and regional organisations; the 2014 West African Ebola outbreak also took prominence with calls for more coordinated action, expressions of serious concern were given in regards to the loss of life and social effects, particularly in Liberia and Sierra Leone; promote of the rule of law, good governance and respect for human rights was also emphasised, including international law norms and principles, peace and security and human rights as one of the UN's pillars; many also reiterated calls for UNSC reform.

As such, he Kutesa concluded that the UNGA serves as important international forum to come together and explore world affairs. It thus serves as a one of a kind institution. The UNGA on the global stage serves as a unique opportunity for mutual engagements. He notably suggested the addition of sideline meetings to focus on the discussed matters during the General Debate. Finally he called for the delegations to approach the upcoming year's work in the spirit of cooperation to make a difference and that "as seen at the General Debate, the work is cut out for us" and there is then a need to take on responsibility and challenges to make a "real and meaningful change." With that, he concluded the agenda item number eight.[10]

Notes
  1. First speech to the UNGA General Debate.[8]
  2. The government of Libya is disputed between a parliament sitting in the traditional capital of Tripoli and another that is temporarily sitting in Tobruk.[9]

References
  1. "Journal of the United Nations No. 2014/182" (PDF). United Nations. 23 September 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
  2. http://www.unhcr.org/5028f5129.pdf
  3. https://www.un.org/en/ga/69/meetings/gadebate/pdf/LS_en.pdf
  4. "General Debate: 24-30 September 2014". United Nations. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  5. "Journal of the United Nations No. 2014/183" (PDF). United Nations. 24 September 2014. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  6. "26 September". United Nations. 26 September 2014. Retrieved 29 September 2014.
  7. "Journal of the United Nations No. 2014/183" (PDF). United Nations. 27 September 2014. Retrieved 27 September 2014.
  8. https://www.un.org/en/ga/69/meetings/gadebate/pdf/IN_en.pdf
  9. http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/world/libyan-parliament-swears-in-new-government/article6454886.ece
  10. General Debate. United Nations TV. 30 September 2014.
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