New York, September 21 (QNA) - The Council of Presidents of the United Nations General Assembly (UNCPGA) convened in New York under the Chairmanship of HE Nassir Abdulaziz Al Nasser, President of the 66th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, with the attendance of HE Dr. Khalilur Rahman, President of the 81st UN General Assembly Session, and the participation of 12 former General Assembly presidents.

The meeting's discussions, according to the "New York Declaration 2026" issued by the council, focused on the challenges facing multilateral work and their implications for the future of the United Nations, amid growing violations of the organization's charter and the escalation of unilateralism in international relations.

The council warned of the dangers of a nuclear arms race in light of accelerating developments in artificial intelligence technologies, calling for an urgent international conference under the UN auspices to discuss the mounting risks of nuclear conflict and work toward establishing multilateral and verifiable measures to limit nuclear weapons.

The council expressed deep concern over the war between Russia and Ukraine, the war in the Middle East, and the resulting humanitarian, economic, financial, and developmental global consequences, warning of the expansion of conflicts and the rising risks of the use of nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction.

The council called on the UN Secretary-General to urgently utilize his good offices, including the possible use of Article 99 of the UN Charter, to facilitate a comprehensive solution to these two major regional conflicts.

The council also called upon the United Nations General Assembly to play a more effective role in addressing the crises in the Middle East and Europe, including consultations on the possibility of convening an urgent meeting of the General Assembly under the "Uniting for Peace" mechanism or other means, as well as strengthening coordination among the principal organs of the United Nations to address the political, economic, financial, humanitarian, developmental, and environmental dimensions of these crises.

The council reaffirmed its call for a fully democratic, transparent, inclusive, and merit-based process for selecting and appointing the Secretary-General of the United Nations, along with continued reform of the organization and the enhancement of its efficiency, effectiveness, and financial sustainability.

The council also called for urgent international action on the governance of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). It proposed establishing a global AGI observatory; a certification system for secure and trustworthy AGI; a UN convention on AGI; and an international AGI agency under UN auspices. (QNA)