Presidents, prime ministers, kings, and potentates are converging on New York for the United Nations General Assembly session. The upcoming General Debate, starting today, will bring together a cast of thousands of delegates for 10 days.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres describes the session as the "World Cup of diplomacy." Yet he adds, "But this cannot be about scoring points; it must be about solving problems. There is too much at stake."
This being the organization's 80th anniversary, the commemorations will be leavened with a touch of gloom rather than gala celebrations. The global situation is beset with wars such as Ukraine and Gaza, humanitarian crises such as Sudan, Haiti, and Congo, as well as simmering conflicts in a dozen far-flung regions such as Yemen, Myanmar, and Lebanon.
Then there's trying to rebuild and foster a daunting democratic transition in places like Syria, still swamped by millions of displaced persons and refugees.
As more than 150 heads of state and government converge at the meeting, the General Assembly's president, Annalena Baerbock, a former German foreign minister, describes the mood with a slogan "Better Together", alluding to the need to pursue "Dialogue and Diplomacy."
In her opening address to the assembly, Ms Baerbock stated, "This is not a normal session. We stand at a crossroads, a make-or-break moment. Eight decades of progress and setbacks, of achievement and failure, of renewal and resolve, have brought us here."
Starting today, Brazil traditionally leads off the debate, followed by the US, which will see an address by President Donald Trump, the King of Jordan, and South Korea's new president. Later in the day, France, Poland, and Morocco will speak, among others. Daily sessions start at 9 am and go until at least 9pm.
The ongoing war in Ukraine still shadows the session and remains a focus for the US, Canada, and the European states. However, as many diplomats privately assert, the long-anticipated cease-fire is unlikely to occur anytime soon.
The perpetual shadow of Palestine hangs over the session in so many ways. Though the State of Palestine holds only observer status, not full membership, at the world body, and though over 140 countries have recognized Palestine, the US is holding firm and has blocked the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and his team from visiting New York.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky returns, as does Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, to restate the positions of the Kyiv and Moscow governments, respectively. The president of the Islamic Republic of Iran joins Syria's new chief of state, as well as Argentina's colourful President Javier Milei, and Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu at the session.
Significantly for the United States, on the eve of the assembly session, the US Senate voted to confirm former national security advisor Mike Waltz as US ambassador to the UN. For months, the Waltz nomination was bottled up in the Foreign Relations Committee in Washington, DC, leaving the administration without a sitting ambassador.
Finally, the Senate voted 47 to 43 to confirm Mr Waltz for the US permanent representative to the UN. He has since presented his credentials to the Secretary General.
And the budget cuts? The US has justifiably played hardball with the UN over cutting the funding of the garishly biased UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in Palestine, given widespread concerns over the group's anti-Israel agenda.
The UN's regular budget, based on the assessment of member states, has seen cuts in funding as well as financial withholding. A cash crunch clouds the organization. The UN has finally agreed to massive budget cuts.
The $3.8 billion (121 billion baht) budget for 2025 has been cut by $576 million to $3.2 bn. By the way, the entire UN regular budget is equal to about 10% of this year's New York City education budget.
For New Yorkers, the annual UN Assembly Session is best known for traffic chaos, closed streets and speeding motorcades with black Secret Service vehicles guarding tinted-glass limousines.
Yet within the UN's cavernous headquarters on the East River, debates, meetings on the margins of the assembly, and ambassadorial glad-handing in discreet sessions will dominate what is dubbed "high-level week". There's a turbulent ride ahead.
John J Metzler is a UN correspondent covering diplomatic and defence issues. A version of this article was previously published in the Bangkok Post and has been reprinted under special arrangement.
