The United Nations General Assembly debate opens on Tuesday (22) in New York with an address by António Guterres — the last the former Portuguese prime minister will deliver at this annual event as UN Secretary-General. Guterres’s speech is scheduled for 09h00 local time and takes place against a complex global backdrop marked by rising geopolitical tensions and conflicts, mounting pressure on development financing and on the organisation itself, rapid technological change, and global warming — factors that continue to test the international system.
Guterres took the helm of the UN in January 2017 and was reappointed for a second five-year term, which ends at the close of 2026.
The High-Level Debate, which runs from Tuesday through 28 September, is expected to bring together 71 heads of state, 45 heads of government, and 11 vice-presidents in New York, Guterres’s spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said on Monday. Fifty ministers and one crown prince are also scheduled to address the debate.
Following Guterres, the first leaders to speak will be Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, United States President Donald Trump, Jordan’s King Abdullah II, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Brazil has opened the General Debate since 1955, a position it secured because, in the early years after the world body’s founding, it volunteered to speak first when other countries were more reluctant to do so. As the host country of UN headquarters in New York, the United States is the second nation to address the General Assembly.
Beyond these fixed positions assigned to Brasília and Washington, the speaking order for the remaining member states is based on the level of representation, expressed preference, and other criteria including geographic balance. According to the provisional schedule provided by the UN, Portugal will be represented by its head of government, Prime Minister Luís Montenegro, who is expected to speak on Thursday afternoon, the third day of the debate.
Among the other leaders expected to attend are Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, as well as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, and Venezuelan interim President Delcy Rodríguez.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is expected to address the assembly via video link after the Trump administration denied him a visa to enter the United States.
Throughout the debate, leaders are expected to deliver statements outlining their positions and priorities amid the complex and interconnected global challenges facing the international community. Speakers are given a voluntary time limit of 15 minutes per address.
A total of 1,553 bilateral meetings between delegation representatives are scheduled, in addition to those António Guterres plans to hold with the majority of leaders throughout the week.
The occasion will also serve as the backdrop for several highly anticipated encounters, including a planned meeting between Trump and Rodríguez — less than a year after the arrest of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who has been held in New York since January. The UN headquarters in New York will host at least 166 events during what is widely regarded as the world’s premier diplomatic forum.
The conflict in the Middle East, the war in Ukraine, and concerns over the development of Artificial Intelligence are expected to be among the central themes of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly.
Source: Diário Económico
Original article: https://www.diarioeconomico.co.mz/2026/09/22/mundo/guterres-abre-ultimo-debate-da-assembleia-geral-enquanto-lider-da-onu/
