UN General Assembly 81st session kicks off in US

The first meeting of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly has taken place at the UN headquarters in New York.

During the meeting, which lasted just under an hour, Khalilur Rahman, president of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly, addressed delegations on the session’s priorities. These include strengthening peace and security, advancing sustainable development, stepping up efforts to combat climate change, promoting and protecting human rights, ensuring universal access to cooperation in digitalization and new technologies, and restoring trust in multilateralism.

"My pledge for the 81st session, dear colleagues and friends, is to work tirelessly to revive trust in this institution, upon which success of our collective action ultimately depends," Khalilur Rahman said.

Rahman also emphasized the need to strengthen the UN’s financial stability. "I appeal to every member state to pay its assessed contributions in full, on time and without conditions," he said.

The 81st UN General Assembly session will run through September 7, 2027, with the General Debate, its first major event, scheduled for September 22-26 and September 28, 2026. Russia’s delegation will be led by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.