The United Nations General Assembly is underway Tuesday (September 19), where world leaders come to the organization's headquarters in New York.
It is expected that both US President Joe Biden and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, are scheduled to speak to the caucus in its first session Tuesday to tackle the war in Ukraine, high food prices, a series of climate-related catastrophes, new political crises in west Africa and Latin America and economic instability.
Other world leaders expected to speak at the general assembly are Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
It was also reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, French President Emmanuel Macron, and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak are not attending this year's plenary session, which meant Biden would be the only leader of the five permanent members of the powerful UN Security Council to attend and address the world's delegates.
Zelensky is expected to meet Biden at the White House on Thursday (September 21), with separate discussions with Silva and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the day prior (Wednesday, September 20).
Rundown of Expected Topics
According to The Guardian, the UN General Assembly will open with a speech by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who will deliver his State of the World address before what the organization describes as the general debate.
As per tradition, the Brazilian delegate or head of state delivers his or her address after that of the secretary-general, which meant Silva would deliver his speech first.
Afterward, Biden is expected to address the assembly, which would reiterate his criticisms of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, urge world delegates to back the Ukrainians in terms of aid, as well as emphasize the US's desire to address challenges in the developing world.
Zelensky would also speak to the world's delegates Tuesday to convince leaders from the global south to support Kyiv against the machinations of Moscow. He is also scheduled to speak at the UN Security Council meeting Wednesday. This is his first in-person speech at the caucus since Russia's invasion.
Erdogan, on the other hand, is expected to use his speech to revive the Black Sea Grain Initiative to allow Ukrainian grain to be exported to the world through the contested Black Sea waters after Putin backed out of it upon its expiry back in July, which resulted in a rise in global food prices.
