Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur Rahman is visiting the United States, where he will join an informal interactive dialogue as part of the election of the president of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) for the 81st session.
The president of the 80th session of the General Assembly, Annalena Baerbock, will convene the informal interactive dialogues with the candidates at 10am and 3pm in New York on May 13, a senior official told UNB.
The dialogues will be broadcast live on UN WebTV.
Civil society organisations and individuals were invited to engage in the informal interactive dialogue by submitting questions to the candidates.
Questions were received through the registration of participants who will engage either in person or through video messages.
Dr Khalilur is a candidate from the Asia-Pacific region with over 30 years of experience with the United Nations, both as a representative of Bangladesh to the General Assembly and as a senior official at the UN secretariat in New York and at UNCTAD in Geneva.
Over the years, he has actively participated in 16 UNGA sessions, engaging directly in its negotiations, high-level meetings and follow-up processes.
Throughout his career, Dr Khalilur has worked extensively on development issues facing the Global South, including those related to Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS).
“I am convinced that our world now needs a more effective and responsive multilateralism. By working together, we can build a more robust multilateral system that commands the trust of Member States and delivers tangible benefits for all,” the foreign minister said in his vision statement.
The foreign minister said he believes that he has the combination of knowledge, experience and leadership capabilities to effectively lead the General Assembly to advance this overarching goal.
The election of the president of the United Nations General Assembly for the 81st session will be held on June 2 in the General Assembly Hall at UN headquarters, in line with Rule 30 of the Rules of Procedure.
In accordance with the established regional rotation, the president of the 81st session of the General Assembly will be elected from the Asia Pacific Group.
Following the withdrawal of the Palestinian candidature, Bangladesh will now compete with Cyprus.
The 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly will open at a historic crossroads, Dr Khalilur said, adding that eight decades after the UN Charter was signed in San Francisco, their shared system of multilateral cooperation faces profound challenges.
“Yet this moment also presents unprecedented opportunities to renew its promise for ‘we the peoples’ in the 21st century,” he said.
