Imran Yaqub Dhillon New York
Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi reached New York to attend the 76th UN general assembly session. PM Khan will virtually address what is known as the “world’s biggest diplomatic gathering” on September 24.
On the sidelines of UNGA FM Shah Mehmood Qureshi will hold meetings with FMs of various countries, senior UN officials & other dignitaries. He will brief local/int’l media on Pakistan’s views on regional & global issues.
Afghanistan, climate change and the coronavirus crises will dominate discussions at the U.N. General Assembly’s hybrid high-level debate starting Tuesday in which a large number of world leaders, including Prime Minister Imran Khan, are set to participate, as security is tightened in New York.
Despite U.S. requests that member states send pre-recorded messages to curb the spread of the coronavirus, 83 heads of state, 43 prime ministers, three deputy prime ministers and 23 foreign ministers are scheduled to address the General Assembly in
person.
PM Khan will virtually address what is known as the “world’s biggest diplomatic gathering” on September 24, as also the presidents of Iran, Egypt, France, Indonesia, South Africa and Zimbabwe.
Each delegation will be permitted to bring up to seven members to the general debate, including the chief delegate, in the scaled-down 76th session of the 193-member Assembly. Covid-19 had pushed the 75th anniversary session last year online for the first time in UN’s history.
Ambassador Akram said Pakistan’s policy statement, which will be delivered by Prime Minister Khan, is expected to convey Islamabad’s views on the major global economic and political issues as well as on the grave situation in Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir and on the fast evolving situation in Afghanistan.
Throughout the session, he said, Pakistan will draw the world‘s attention to the human rights violations in Indian occupied Kashmir, the imperative to stabilize Afghanistan, the need to combat Islamophobia and counter disinfor-mation, such as that being propagated by India, as well as to address the economic challenges confronting develop-ing countries.
The secretary-general has also mandated that all U.N. staff in the building during the week be vaccinated. U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said all people entering the U.N. headquarters complex, including visitors, delegates, and contractors, will have to “attest through their swipe card or escorted entry that they do not have symptoms of COVID-19 and have not tested positive for COVID-19 in the last 10 days.
