The summit takes place between international conflicts and commercial disputes, offering 193 Member States the opportunity to comment. Lula opens the general debate with a speech that should be against the United States. The United Nations General Assembly, the main deliberative body of the United Nations, holds its 80th edition in the middle of a period of turbulence in global diplomacy.
This year’s session, which began on 9 September, has delegations from all the Member States of the United Nations, which have equal representation on a base of “a state, a vote”. From the 23rd of this month, the debate increases one step and will take place between high -level representatives of countries.
It is on this date that the traditional discourse of the heads of the government will take place, the general debate, at the organization’s headquarters in New York. Traditionally, the summit is open by a Brazilian representative, in this case, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Unlike other United Nations agencies, such as the Security Council, all members have the same power to vote on resolutions in the General Assembly, the only forum in which all countries are represented. Many of them, however, are not binding and are limited to the formal position of the countries.
What is discussed at the General Assembly?
There is a large agenda discussed in every general assembly, which usually includes political, economic, social, environmental and security problems.
The Assembly also hosts independent events, such as the climate, the global economy and updates on sustainable development objectives, which were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as an invitation to action to end poverty and protect the planet.
For example, top of the Palestinian territories and the preparation for the 30th United Nations Conference on climate change (COP30), which takes place in Belém in November are planned in the agenda of Lula.
This year there will also be the launch of a new dialogue on international governance for artificial intelligence.
Assembly under pressure from international disputes
Although the aim of the general assembly is to bring together all Member States to establish consent, the event is always crossed by the context of current global affairs. This year, the summit happens to the interlocutory appeal, such as the war in Ukraine and the offensive of Israel in Gaza, as well as a triggering factor of protectionism and commercial war.
Recent editions have also occurred between democratic arrest bars in some regions of the world. “There is a general setback of democracy in several states,” he told Dw Panke, a professor of international relations at the University of Berlin. “This is an aspect that makes the dynamics of the most difficult and stimulating”.
Priority and dynamics of the change of power, such as China’s rise and its growing list of allies through the new extensive path initiative, as well as the approach increasingly reclined by the United States in relation to international agencies, can also influence the procedures and the final writing of the resolutions. At the meeting of this year, the tensions began in August, with the American veto to grant visas to the representatives of the Palestinian Authority to participate in the meeting.
Who manages the general assembly?
Every year, a new president of the work of the United Nations General Assembly is elected by one of the five geographical groups represented in the body.
The president is responsible for the opening and closing of the debates, as well as to facilitate the discussions and regulation of the time of speech. This year’s president is the former German Minister Annana Baertbock.
Brazil opens the work of the general debate
Among the main moments of the General Assembly there is the general debate, which offers the opportunity for all 193 members to manifest itself. The theme of the 80th edition is “Best Together: 80 years and more for peace, development and human rights”.
The debate among the heads of the countries will begin on Tuesday 23 September and the discussions should extend until Monday 29 September.
Brazil inaugurates the United Nations speeches with a diplomatic custom that became a tradition from the first general assemblies, which began in 1947, when the country usually offered volunteer to pronounce first.
For Brazil, the moment is more delicate than in previous years, when Lula’s speech was followed by the President of the United States Joe Biden. The relationships between Washington and Brasilia, previously stable, deteriorated with the inauguration of Donald Trump, who exchanged direct attacks with lula for the press.
The stage guarantees high international visibility to the Brazilian representative, who should adopt a pro-Sarania tone in the face of the sanctions imposed by the White House and the US pressure on the trial that condemned the former president Jair Bolsonaro. The declaration should also counteract that of the American representative, who then speaks of representing the host country.
The resolutions are not binding. So what is the purpose of the general assembly?
A point of the United Nations General Assembly is that their resolutions do not force states to act, since none of these agreements are binding.
This means that a country can support all the resolutions approved in the assembly, but not follow or never implement the agreed principles. An example is the resolution widely accepted for the establishment of a Palestinian state, approved this month, but has no practical effects.
The non -binding nature of the decision -making process to the General Assembly has led to criticism to its effectiveness in recent years.
For panke, the resolutions still provide a platform for nations to indicate their position and prepare the ground to build more frank and legally binding agreements. “The trial can begin in the context of the General Assembly and subsequently call a conference of the parties and approve a legally binding international treatise,” Panke said. One does not necessarily exclude the other.
The expert also stressed that the resolutions formed in the summit have a regulatory power, despite their non -binding nature. “They establish adequacy standards with which the public can consider the states responsible”.
Source: Terra
Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.
