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As the incoming president of the UN General Assembly, Volkan Bozkir of Turkey, put it, “We were supposed to celebrate the 75th anniversary. Things turned out differently.”
“A clear lack of drama”
On the first day, Tuesday, almost all the permanent members of the UN Security Council speak: the president of the United States, Donald Trump; President Xi Jinping of China; Russian President Vladimir Putin, who rarely speaks at the UN; French President Emmanuel Macron and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani are heading to the Assembly Hall within hours of each other.
With just a few weeks before the US presidential election, there was great anticipation for what President Trump might say in person about Iran, China, or perhaps even Joe Biden. But he is unlikely to go off-script in his recorded statement from the White House. Without him, “there will be a distinct lack of drama,” said Richard Gowan, UN director at International Crisis Group.
Thanks to the convenience of calling, there is a silver lining: the UN can claim the most heads of state and government leaders who have spoken this year – 170 in all. Germany’s ambassador to the UN, Christoph Heusgen, cites the participation as proof that “the underlying concept of multilateralism has not lost any appeal in the 75th year of the UN, even if the UN is not perfect.”
But who will be watching and listening? In typical years, Assembly Hall attendance declines after the President of the United States and other powerful dignitaries leave; Woe to the foreign minister getting stuck talking at 9pm on a Saturday night! In this virtual world at home, no world leader can be sure that someone is tuning in.
“I really doubt that presidents, prime ministers, are going to be sitting at home with a bucket of popcorn looking at all of their counterparts,” Gowan says.
Another notable absence this year in a system that is committed to defending gender equality: women. It will not be until the 51st head of state or government arrives on the list of speakers before a woman takes her turn, in this case President Zuzana Čaputová of Slovakia.
Diplomacy without diplomats
Diplomacy could have been particularly urgent this year as the nations of the world grapple with major differences on issues from climate change to the Middle East.
But “diplomacy, to be effective, requires personal contact,” said UN Secretary-General Guterres, who should know: He usually meets in person with hundreds of visiting officials at the UNGA.
Meeting face-to-face has been powerful in recent years, with dozens of world leaders conducting what is known as “speed dating,” from handshake to cocktail party; seeking funding from Wall Street bankers; And sometimes making a deal that can really promote a little piece of peace somewhere. Plans for the Iran nuclear deal gained momentum at the UNGA during the Obama administration.
In a normal year of rubbing shoulders at the UNGA, “you have frank discussions and you get to know people; now we can’t meet in person,” laments Rosemarie DiCarlo, the UN’s top political official.
New York restaurant and store owners already reeling from the virus will also miss out on waves of big spenders and their delegations. However, some locals are delighted.
Many New Yorkers have complained for decades about limousine parades and security blockades that block public transportation and hamper traffic throughout Manhattan. “The people of New York will be delighted to take back their streets for two weeks,” said Acting UK Ambassador Jonathan Allen.
And even some long-serving diplomats and UN personnel confess that they are secretly relieved to take a break from the grueling 20-hour high-level weekdays, which traditionally involve entertaining or holding hands with others. its president or prime minister with large itinerant delegations.
Gift bags with masks and hand sanitizer.
The iconic Assembly Hall will not be completely empty this week: one diplomat per country will be able to present their leader’s videotaped speech, speaking from their socially distanced seats instead of the rostrum.
“As long as the situation is not resolved, we have to act in this way,” said French ambassador to the UN, Nicolas de Rivière.
Countries were asked to submit videos at least four days before the speech. Requested execution time including speech and introduction: 15 minutes. Somewhere, speakers Fidel Castro and Moammar Ghadafi, who have records, are frowning.
Additional hand sanitizers will be installed in the wings of the room. Malta is donating gift bags with masks and disinfectants outside the Show.
In total, about 210 people are expected in the Assembly Hall, as opposed to the 2,500 people with room to stand in regular General Assembly weeks, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
On the sidelines, largely virtual meetings will also take place on topics such as climate change, biodiversity and Lebanon.
It is a radical change in a symbolic moment. In 1945, the original members of the United Nations ignited diplomatic history by signing the famous charter of the fledgling organization in San Francisco.
Fast forward and the footage in the run-up to what would have been the organization’s 75th anniversary gala couldn’t be more sinister: Smoke from wildfires clouds the air in San Francisco, while in New York, the big ” celebration “of the General Assembly will be practically empty.
