The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) meets in regular sessions in New York City from September to December each year, and thereafter as required. During UNGA High Level Week each September, the New York Foreign Press Center organizes briefings and roundtables in which U.S. policy makers and others discuss priority topics for that year with journalists of foreign media organizations.
UNGA 2023
September 22
Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Brian A. Nichols shares U.S. perspectives on the 78th U.N. General Assembly High Level Week, with a focus on policies and initiatives towards Latin America and the Caribbean. Assistant Secretary Nichols also discusses how the international community can address insecurity in Haiti and support the Haitian people, following a multilateral ministerial meeting on Haiti at UNGA78 on Friday, September 22.
September 21
Ambassador Van Schaack provides an overview of the justice and accountability issues being addressed at UNGA, including events on the role of technology in protecting civilians in conflict zones, efforts toward justice and accountability in Sudan, standing in solidarity with Uyghurs, and human rights violations in Syria.
September 20
Under Secretary of State Jose W. Fernandez leads the work of the State Department to promote economic prosperity through trade and investment by countering economic coercion, securing reliable and sustainable supply chains, promoting clean energy solutions, and building global partnerships to address the global climate, biodiversity, and pollution crises. Alongside Assistant Secretaries Toloui and Littlejohn, he updated media on key priorities for the Administration in the areas of international policies and initiatives related to economic growth, energy, agriculture, the ocean, climate and the environment, and science and technology. Briefers provided a readout of their UNGA meetings.
September 19
USAID Deputy Administrator Isobel Coleman discusses how the United States is leading the global response to humanitarian crises around the world as countries grapple with food insecurity, climate crisis, and a rising number of disasters. This includes an additional $11 million the United States will provide to local and international organizations in Libya responding to their urgent humanitarian needs. At the briefing, Coleman also shared a major humanitarian assistance announcement focused on the African continent responding to the impacts of humanitarian crises and natural disasters for: Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Djibouti, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Togo, Zimbabwe, and the central Sahel. Deputy Administrator Coleman also highlighted her recent trip to Tanzania, where she led the U.S. delegation to the Africa Food Systems Forum.
Ambassador Lapenn provides a readout of the Monday, September 18 launch of the Partnership for Atlantic cooperation by Secretary Blinken and Ministers from around the Atlantic. This new partnership provides a forum for Atlantic states to address shared challenges across the region, with a focus on sustainable development and science and technology. The Ambassador highlighted priority areas for this new forum and took questions following her briefing.
Ambassador Todd D. Robinson provides a readout in-person and on-the-record on Secretary Blinken’s event on “Addressing the Public Health and Security Threats of Synthetic Drugs Through Global Cooperation.” He will cover the United States’ efforts to advance global partnerships and commitment to tackling this issue. This event serves as the second high-level political touchpoint of the Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug Threats which was launched on July 7, 2023. The gathering will reinforce global, high-level attention to address synthetic drug threats, highlight and convey political support and momentum for the Coalition, and formalize the Coalition’s three lines of effort on 1) preventing the illicit manufacture and trafficking of synthetic drugs; 2) detecting emerging drug threats and use patterns; and 3) promoting public health interventions and prevention services and reduce drug use, overdose, and other related harms.
September 18
September 18, 2023. In this in-person on-the-record briefing, National Security Council (NSC) Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby discussed U.S. priorities at the upcoming United Nations General Assembly and other news of the day.
UNGA 2022
On September 20, 2022, USAID Chief Climate Officer Gillian Caldwell discussed the recently released Action Plan for the President’s Emergency Plan for Adaptation and Resilience (PREPARE). Launched by President Biden at COP26, PREPARE is a whole-of-government initiative that aims to support more than half a billion people in developing countries to adapt to and manage the impacts of climate change by 2030. The new PREPARE Action Plan outlines specific steps the United States will take to achieve that goal. Ms. Caldwell also discussed the impacts of climate change on the global food crisis and the U.S. response, as well as USAID’s ambitious goals to tackle the climate crisis through its new Climate Strategy (2022-2030).
The current global food security crisis stems from the three Cs—climate change, COVID-19, and armed conflicts. As this is a multi-causal food crisis, it is complex, and it will not be resolved this year or next and requires commitments from countries across the world to properly address. On September 21, 2022 USAID Deputy Administrator for Policy and Programming Isobel Coleman, and Special Envoy for Global Food Security Dr. Cary Fowler discussed what the United States is doing to combat global food insecurity to include within the UN System.
On September 21, 2022, Under Secretary Fernandez updated media on U.S. diplomatic and programmatic efforts to strengthen global energy security and accelerate the transition to clean energy
On Thursday, September 22, 2022,Assistant Secretary Medina updated media on U.S. environmental priorities and her meetings during High Level Week of the UN General Assembly. She also discussed U.S. objectives in the coming months including combating plastic pollution and nature crimes, fighting the climate crisis, and reversing biodiversity loss.
On September 22, 2022, Assistant Secretary Kritenbrink and Deputy Assistant to the President and Coordinator for the Indo-Pacific Campbell provided a readout of the first Partners in the Blue Pacific (PBP) ministerial, which includes participation by Pacific Ministers, Ministers and representatives of Partners in the Blue Pacific (PBP) members, and observers. The PBP is a new initiative, announced in June 2022, that builds on members’ longstanding commitment to the Pacific region and reaffirms support for prosperity, resilience, and security in the region.
On September 22, 2022, Katrina Fotovat, the Senior Official of the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Global Women’s Issues and Rina Amiri, Special Envoy for Afghan Women, Girls, and Human Rights updated media on U.S. priorities during High Level Week at the United Nations General Assembly, the U.S. National Gender Strategy, efforts to combat gender-based violence, and promote women’s economic empowerment.