UNITED NATIONS, September 21 — The green marble podium sits ready. Inside the Secretariat building on Manhattan’s East River, the corridors are already crowded with delegations, and by nightfall the first motorcades will be threading through the security cordon on First Avenue. Each September, New York becomes the centre of global diplomacy as presidents, prime ministers, ministers and diplomats from around the world gather at United Nations Headquarters for the high-level week of the UN General Assembly.
This year’s session, the 81st, opens against a backdrop of mounting geopolitical tensions, overlapping global crises and growing divisions between countries — and with sustained pressure on the multilateral system itself. The session is presided over by newly elected Assembly President Khalilur Rahman of Bangladesh, under the theme: “Restoring trust, managing transformation: A United Nations that delivers for all.”
The General Debate
The centrepiece is the General Debate, which begins on 22 September. Over several days, presidents, prime ministers and senior representatives of all 193 UN Member States address the General Assembly from that iconic green marble podium. The speeches provide a global snapshot of national priorities and concerns.
Conflicts, economic challenges, humanitarian crises, climate change, development and emerging technologies are all expected to feature prominently. Much of the real diplomacy, though, takes place behind closed doors.
Hundreds of bilateral and multilateral meetings offer leaders a rare opportunity to meet allies, partners and rivals in one place.
Development, climate and the rising seas
Ahead of the General Debate, leaders gather on 18 September for the annual SDG Moment. In 2015, countries adopted 17 Sustainable Development Goals aimed at tackling challenges ranging from poverty and hunger to education, clean water and access to energy by 2030. With less than five years remaining, the UN says progress on half of all SDG targets is weak and insufficient.
The meeting will focus not only on assessing progress but also on highlighting practical solutions that can be expanded and replicated elsewhere. On 23 September, UN Secretary-General António Guterres convenes world leaders for a High-Level Event on Climate Action and the Just Transition.
With global temperatures continuing to rise, discussions focus on accelerating the shift to renewable energy, expanding climate finance for developing countries and strengthening support for communities already experiencing the impacts of climate change. The following day, leaders turn their attention to sea level rise, one of the most visible consequences of global warming. For many small island developing States and low-lying coastal communities, rising seas are already threatening homes, infrastructure and freshwater supplies.
The meeting aims to strengthen international cooperation and mobilise support for countries most at risk.
Pandemic lessons and the right to development
On 25 September, Heads of State and Government revisit the lessons of COVID-19. The pandemic demonstrated how quickly a local outbreak can become a global emergency and exposed major inequalities in access to vaccines, medicines and other essential resources. Leaders meeting on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response discuss how to strengthen health systems, improve readiness, and ensure a more equitable international response to future health crises.
Another major meeting on 23 September marks the 40th anniversary of the Declaration on the Right to Development, adopted by the General Assembly in 1986. The declaration established that development is about more than economic growth, emphasizing participation, equality and non-discrimination, and the meeting will take stock of its legacy.
The week’s agenda also includes the fight against racism, alongside conflicts and international security, as leaders weigh whether the UN can still deliver collective answers at a time of fragmenting alliances. Watch the General Debate opening on 22 September, and whether the closed-door bilaterals produce anything the podium speeches do not.
