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High-level week of the 78th UN General Assembly
Alain Berset leads the Swiss delegation to the opening of the 78th General Assembly. On 18 September, he takes part in the summit on the Sustainable Development Goals, which is held only every four years: only 12% of the 169 targets are on track. He is the first speaker at a round table on science, technology and data.
On the 19th, he addresses the General Assembly: extreme inequality, unseen since the early 20th century, the climate crisis, wars, the erosion of multilateralism. “The UN embodies the institutionalised hope for a better world.” On the 20th, he speaks at the Security Council, chaired by Albania, in the debate on Ukraine: Russia, a permanent member, “denies its responsibility” for the thousands of dead and wounded; Switzerland calls on it to withdraw immediately from Ukrainian territory.
On the sidelines, he sees a dozen heads of state and government, including Maia Sandu, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Yoon Suk-yeol. With António Guterres, he discusses the Black Sea Grain Initiative, Ukraine and peace in Colombia.
Monday 18 September 2023 — New York
- Opening of the summit on the Sustainable Development Goals
- Meeting with Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune
- Meeting with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
- Meeting with UN Secretary-General António Guterres
- Meeting with Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of the African Union Commission
- Meeting with Moldovan President Maia Sandu
- SDG summit round table: science, technology, innovation and data, speech
- Exchanges with the presidents of Botswana, the Central African Republic and Albania, and with the Executive Secretary of SADC
- Reception for the 50th anniversary of Germany’s accession to the UN
Tuesday 19 September 2023 — New York
- Opening of the general debate
- Switzerland’s speech to the General Assembly
- Meeting with Kenyan President William Ruto
- Reception hosted by President Joe Biden at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Wednesday 20 September 2023 — New York
- Meeting with South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol
- Meeting with South Sudanese President Salva Kiir Mayardit
- Security Council open debate on Ukraine, speech
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