New Delhi: As the 78th session of the UN General Assembly began on Monday, India's permanent representative to the UN, Ruchira Kamboj on Tuesday, highlighted that India's focus as G20 President on issues vital to the Global South as well as counter-terrorism, Security Council reforms, and peacekeeping will be among its top priorities during the annual high-level 78th session of the UN General Assembly.
The high-level 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly began on Monday as Heads of State and several world leaders arrived at the UN headquarters.
“As @g20org President, we are championing global collaboration & continue to emphasize issues that are vital to the Global South countries. India is leading efforts in CounterTerrorism, peacekeeping & UN reforms, among others,” India’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations posted on X (formerly Twitter).
As the current president of the G20, India will continue to emphasize issues that are vital to the Global South countries, including climate action, finance, and sustainable development goals,” Kamboj said while adding "We proudly opened the doors for the African Union to join the G20, recognizing the importance of global collaboration to address contemporary challenges”. Kamboj noted that India actively participates in the discourse for the expansion of the United Nations Security Council.
“In the realm of UN reforms, India actively participates in the discourse for Security Council reforms, aiming for permanent membership, and emphasizing the expansion of both permanent and non-permanent membership categories of membership,” she added. She said that India’s commitment to sustainable growth is a part of the New Delhi Declaration adopted at the G20 Summit in India.
“In matters of human rights and social issues, India champions health, universal health coverage, and the prevention of pandemics. We stand firmly for women’s rights, constructive human rights dialogues, and an inter-cultural dialogue for peace. India will chair the 62nd session of the UN Commission for Social Development, the first time since 1975, that India hosts this esteemed position,” Kamboj further added
She emphasized that global counter-terrorism efforts are needed to address the misuse of technology by terrorists and advocate for a comprehensive convention on international terrorism.
Meanwhile, speaking at a side event on Monday titled ‘Artificial Intelligence for Accelerating Progress on the Sustainable Development Goals’ ahead of the 78th event of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Kamboj said India acknowledges the pivotal role of Artificial Intelligence and is poised to lead the way with the vision of ‘AI for All’.
“Well, AI is scarily powerful! And India, as the world’s fastest-growing economy, acknowledges its pivotal role in this revolution. With the world’s largest pool of skilled AI professionals, we are poised to lead the way. By 2035, AI has the potential to contribute an astounding one trillion dollars to India’s economy,” Kamboj said while addressing the event
It is pertinent to note that India will host the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence ( GPAI) Summit in New Delhi from 12-14 December 2023.
According to the latest provisional list of speakers for the high-level general debate of the 78th session of the General Assembly, India's External Minister Jaishankar will address the General Debate on the morning of September 26, the last day of the high-level week. However, in the first provisional list of speakers, India’s “Head of Government” is scheduled to address the session in the afternoon of September 22.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will address the high-level session on the first day of the General Debate, as the war with Russia continues to escalate. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will address on September 23. It is worth mentioning that on June 21, PM Modi led a yoga session at the UN headquarters in commemoration the International Yoga Day. PM Modi has also proposed the UNGA to mark the day as an annual commemoration.
The general debate of the 78th session of the UNGA is considered the busiest diplomatic season of the year at the UN Headquarters, and the high-level session opens in September every year. The General Assembly hosts a much-watched debate of world leaders annually.
