English
العربية
Français
Deutsch
Español
русский
हिंदी
اردو
LoginUN/ 81st Session of UNGA to Kick Off in New York Tomorrow
Doha, September 07 (QNA) - The 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) will commence tomorrow, Tuesday, in New York City, USA. This year's session is being held amidst a turbulent international landscape and escalating challenges.
The new session, chaired by His Excellency Khalilur Rahman, will be held under the theme "Restoring Trust, Managing Transformation: A United Nations That Delivers for All". This comes at a time when the gap between the scale of global crises and the international system's capacity to contain them is widening, and multilateral action is facing a difficult test in light of wars, geopolitical divisions, and intertwined humanitarian, climate, and economic crises.
The United Nations enters its new session with a packed agenda addressing the most pressing issues facing the international community, from wars and conflicts and matters of international peace and security, to sustainable development, climate action, global health, human rights, technology governance, artificial intelligence, and the reform of the international organization. However, these files, despite their diversity, converge on a deeper question concerning the United Nations itself, and the extent to which the international system it represents, which was established more than eight decades ago, can keep pace with a world in which the balance of power has changed and centers of influence have multiplied, while crises have become more complex and intertwined.
Among the political and humanitarian issues on the agenda, the Palestinian issue and the ongoing Israeli occupation's aggression against the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, 2023, along with its humanitarian and political repercussions, are likely to occupy a significant portion of the session's deliberations. This is due to the continuation of the crisis and its transformation into a test of the credibility of the international system, international humanitarian law, and the UN's ability to protect civilians.
Discussions in this context are expected to focus on the future of the Gaza Strip, reconstruction efforts, the flow of humanitarian aid, and the role of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), as well as the future of the Palestinian question and efforts to revive the two-state solution.
The war in Ukraine will also feature prominently in the discussions, having become, since its outbreak in late February 2022, one of the most significant points of contention between Russia and the West, and having far-reaching consequences for European security, energy and food markets, and global military spending.
In addition to the situations in the Gaza Strip and Ukraine, peace and security issues in many parts of the world will top the agenda of member states, given the continuation of conflicts and the worsening humanitarian crises, and the increasing challenges they pose to the ability of the international community to prevent, resolve, and respond to the consequences of conflicts.
Amid these challenges, the participation of the State of Qatar in UNGA's 81st session is of particular importance, in light of the growing role it plays in supporting efforts to establish peace and resolve conflicts through dialogue, mediation and diplomacy, making the New York meetings an opportunity to confirm its approach based on prioritizing political solutions, reducing escalation and strengthening collective action in the face of crises that threaten regional and international security and stability.
The session also provides a platform for the State of Qatar to present its vision on priority issues, foremost among them the Palestinian issue and the situation in the Gaza Strip, enhancing security and stability in the region and preventing the escalation of conflicts, as well as promoting mediation, preventive diplomacy, and conflict resolution, and supporting humanitarian work and sustainable development. These priorities reflect Qatar's approach to supporting multilateral action and strengthening the role of the United Nations in preventing crises, opening channels for dialogue, and reaching peaceful and sustainable solutions and settlements.
Wars and conflicts will not dominate the session's agenda, as the General Assembly prepares for a series of high-level meetings and events addressing development, climate, health, human rights, and disarmament. This is an attempt to revitalize international efforts that have been repeatedly disrupted in recent years by the COVID-19 pandemic, wars, and crises related to debt, food, energy, and inflation.
In this context, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are gaining particular importance during the 81st session, as the deadline for implementing the 2030 agenda approaches. The United Nations is striving to mobilize renewed political will to accelerate progress toward these goals and address the widening gaps in development pathways.
The session's agenda includes a "Sustainable Development Goals Moment" on Sept. 18, followed by the high-level general debate on Sept. 22. This debate will be the highlight of the session and an opportunity for countries to present their positions on key international issues and crises.
Climate change will also be a central theme of the high-level meetings, with a climate action meeting and a "just transition" session on Sept. 23. The following day, another high-level meeting will address the existential threats posed by rising sea levels, given the escalating impacts of climate change, particularly on island states and the most vulnerable communities.
On Sept. 23, UNGA will also host a high-level meeting to mark the 40th anniversary of the Declaration on the Right to Development. This meeting will provide a platform for discussing development disparities, financing, debt, the North-South divide, and the need for a more balanced and equitable international economic order.
Global health security is also on the agenda for the session, with the General Assembly holding a high-level meeting on pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response on Sept. 25. This meeting will bring to the forefront issues of health system readiness, early warning systems, equitable access to vaccines and medicines, and financing for health emergency preparedness and response.
The high-level meetings continue on Sept. 28 with a meeting to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action, which serves as an international framework for combating racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia, and related intolerance.
On Sept. 29, the General Assembly will hold a high-level plenary meeting to commemorate and promote the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons, at a time of growing international concern regarding nuclear armament and the future of the disarmament regime.
Alongside these traditional issues, technology governance and artificial intelligence stand out as rising priorities on the UN agenda. The President of the General Assembly has placed the governance of emerging technologies, particularly AI, among the session's priorities, alongside peace and security, sustainable development, climate change, human rights, and UN reform.
The session's work extends beyond the high-level week, continuing throughout the year, from September 2026 to September 2027, through UNGA's six main committees. These committees address disarmament and international security, economic and financial issues, social, humanitarian, and cultural affairs, special political and decolonization matters, administrative and budgetary issues, and legal matters.
Alongside the international agenda burdened with crises, reforming the UN itself will be one of the most sensitive issues during the new session. There are growing calls to develop its institutions and mechanisms to reflect the transformations in the international system and enhance its capacity to respond to crises.
These discussions coincide with financial challenges facing the organization, given the liquidity pressures resulting from delays or shortfalls in the payment of assessed contributions by some member states, which adds another dimension to the debate about the future of the United Nations and its ability to perform its tasks.
In remarks to Qatar News Agency (QNA), international relations expert and consultant, Dr. Ahmed Ghaith Al Kuwari said that the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) is being held in an international and regional context unlike that of previous sessions.
He added that representatives from West Asia will not enter the meeting halls in New York burdened with traditional political crises that can be dealt with individually. Rather, they will enter with the experience that has proven that war in this region can quickly escalate from the military arena to the sea, energy, trade, public finance, supply chains, and global markets.
In this context, he emphasized the importance of Qatar's participation in the UN General Assembly meetings, stating that this participation should not be viewed merely as routine diplomatic engagement in the largest international gathering. Instead, it comes at a moment when fundamental questions are being raised concerning the future of security in the Gulf and the Middle East, and the extent to which the current international system can protect the sovereignty of states, freedom of navigation and international trade, and prevent regional conflicts from escalating into global economic crises.
Dr. Al Kuwari stated that the problem is not the absence of law, as the world does not always suffer from a lack of legal rules. The question is not always, "Where is the law?" but rather, "Who guarantees its implementation when its provisions conflict with the interests of powerful nations?"
He emphasized that UNGA's 81st session is facing a crucial test - the UN is not required to issue more statements calling on parties to exercise restraint, as this language has become commonplace. The real question is whether the international community can shift from managing crises after they occur to preventing their formation before they happen, and whether a regional war be prevented from disrupting a vital artery through which the interests of dozens of countries pass, threatening global energy supplies, disrupting public budgets, raising transportation, insurance, and food costs, and then shifting the burden of the conflict onto peoples and nations that were not originally involved.
Dr. Al Kuwari stressed that the importance of the current session of the General Assembly lies not only in its being an occasion to discuss the consequences of the crisis, but also in its being an opportunity to address the flaws that allowed the crisis to escalate so rapidly from a military conflict into a threat to the international economic order.
Regarding the issues, topics, and files that are of interest to the State of Qatar during the events and discussions of the 81st session of the General Assembly, Assistant Professor in the Department of International Affairs at Qatar University (QU), Dr. Abdullah Bandar Al Otaibi expressed his belief that Qatar's priorities will revolve around three interconnected circles, namely: issues of regional security and stability, foremost among them the Palestinian issue, security in the Gulf region, de-escalation, and preventing the expansion of conflicts; strengthening mediation, preventive diplomacy, and conflict resolution - an area in which Qatar has moved from merely supporting multilateral action to actively contributing to producing solutions, whether in West Asia or in other international issues.
The third point is, protecting the international order based on the rule of law, respecting the sovereignty of states, and promoting humanitarian action and sustainable development. Therefore, Qatar's participation is inseparable from a broader question: how can international multilateralism be transformed from a framework for managing crises after they occur into a tool for preventing them and forging settlements?
Dr. Al Otaibi emphasized that the importance of the UNGA week lies not only in the speeches but also in what transpires on its sidelines. He anticipated that Gaza and the future of the Palestinian cause, de-escalation of regional tensions, and Gulf security and maritime navigation would be among the most prominent issues likely to be the subject of intensive, behind-the-scenes discussions.
He also noted that New York offers a rare diplomatic advantage, which lies in the presence of parties that cannot formally meet in one place allows mediators to gauge positions, convey messages, and build initial understandings without raising political expectations.
The Assistant Professor in the Department of International Affairs at QU highlighted the theme of UNGA's 81st session, saying it reflects a dual crisis: a crisis of confidence and a crisis of capacity. There is a growing gap between the scale of international challenges and the ability of multilateral institutions to address them, especially when mechanisms for collective action are disrupted by polarization and the interests of major powers, Dr. Al Otaibi explained further, pointing out that the problem is not the absence of institutions, but rather the decline in confidence in their ability to consistently apply rules and translate resolutions into results.
Dr. Al Otaibi emphasized that while the General Assembly lacks the executive powers of the Security Council, it possesses the power of collective legitimacy, pointing out that it can keep the Palestinian issue at the center of the international agenda, build the broadest possible consensus on protecting civilians, ensuring humanitarian aid, rejecting displacement, supporting the Palestinian right to self-determination, and pushing for a viable political process. Most importantly, it must bridge the gap between international consensus and implementation, as the Gaza crisis demonstrated that numerous resolutions are insufficient without mechanisms to translate them into effective political and diplomatic pressure, he added.
Regarding UN reform, the Assistant Professor in the Department of International Affairs at Qatar University anticipated more progress in the discussion than a major institutional breakthrough. He said that almost everyone acknowledges that the Security Council's composition no longer reflects the distribution of power and representation in the current international system, particularly for Africa, Asia, and Latin America. However, agreeing on the necessity of reform is far easier than agreeing on its form. Paradoxically, reforming the system requires the consent of the powers that benefit from its current structure. Therefore, the true test of this session may not be achieving complete reform, but rather moving from acknowledging the flaws in representation and effectiveness to more serious negotiations on how to address them.
For his part, Associate Professor of Conflict Management at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies (DI), Dr. Ibrahim Khatib stated that the new session of the UNGA is significant due to three key factors, namely: the UN's role has declined recently, with attempts to marginalize it in international affairs through reduced funding for its various agencies; trust in the UN has waned, reflecting its diminished international presence and involvement in global crises, whether international conflicts like those currently unfolding in West Asia, or major non-political issues such as climate change and energy. These factors, he explained, contribute to the erosion of trust in the UN.
In remarks to QNA, Dr. Khatib said that the third factor concerns the future of the UN and the UNGA, particularly regarding the election of its president and the organization's role, noting that this will present an organizational challenge for the UN and its future functions.
Regarding whether the problem lies in the structure of the international organization itself or in the lack of political will among member states, he expressed his belief that both factors are at play simultaneously.
One factor is related to the structure of the United Nations and its decision-making mechanisms, particularly the presence of veto-wielding states in the Security Council, which have obstructed many pressing issues for various countries around the world. At the same time, there is a lack of political will, especially among influential states within the UN, particularly the major powers, to empower the United Nations to be a strong actor in global affairs, he explained further, noting that these major powers attempt to limit their international influence through direct intervention and avoid engaging with the UN.
He emphasized that this situation poses a challenge to public trust in the UN and its role as a representative of the people, adding that public trust in the international system is declining not only in our region but globally, as the international organization's role in addressing the critical issues facing nations diminishes.
He pointed to the polarization within the international community, which affects Security Council decisions, and said it casts a shadow over the work of the UN, stressing that the matter hinges on the political will to reach consensus, and that this consensus must be reached within the framework of the United Nations, not through bilateral relations between individual countries.
Dr. Khatib affirmed that the question facing these countries is whether the United Nations will be an effective organization, or one whose role is limited or confined to certain issues that do not concern the major powers.
He noted that several issues could pose a true test of the UN' capabilities. Some of these relate to international conflicts, such as those currently unfolding in West Asia and globally, and how the UN addresses them. Another challenge is energy and managing the global energy supply situation, which presents a central challenge. A third issue concerns the environment, specifically environmental changes and global warming, the effects of which we have witnessed in the past year. This will be a crucial question, especially given the withdrawal of some countries from relevant agreements. These are central challenges, and if the United Nations is unable to address at least some of them, it will further erode public trust in the organization, as it will appear incapable of handling even less pressing matters than the wars plaguing the region.
Associate Professor of Conflict Management at the DI, Dr. Ibrahim Khatib emphasized that managing global transformations in the coming years requires concerted efforts, political will, and an understanding that events in one country can affect others. He stressed the importance of recognizing the interconnectedness of the world and the close links between countries and their crises; a crisis in our region impacts other nations, thus necessitating a collective approach to these transformations. (QNA)
chat
Hello! How can we help?
Beta
