In Chinese President Xi Jinping’s video to the UN-75 commemoration, he said the “sudden attack of Covid-19 is a grave test for the entire world.” Since the pandemic began in March, at least 31 million cases have been confirmed globally and nearly one million people have died. JOHN PENNEY
President Trump attending the United Nations lunch for world leaders at last year’s annual opening debate of the General Assembly, in the pre-Covid-19 universe. It is unclear if he is physically attending this year’s session; if not, he will likely deliver his remarks by video, like other leaders. Some UN-watchers are expecting more harsh criticism, or worse, from him on the UN. LI MUZI/XINHUA POOL PHOTO
Zuzana Caputova, the president of Slovakia, addressing the General Assembly’s 74th session, Sept. 24, 2019. This year, she is the first woman to speak at the opening session, No. 53 on the UN’s provisional list of speakers, reflecting the abysmally low number of female heads of state, 22. CIA PAK/UN PHOTO
President Zuzana Caputova of Slovakia spoke at last year’s opening session of the General Assembly, and is the first woman to speak at this year’s, albeit 53rd on the list. RICK BAJORNAS/UN PHOTO
The notion that ‘Canada is better’, especially when compared with US foreign policy, has persisted for many years. Recent events at the United Nations have, however, exposed the true nature of Canada’s global position, particularly in the matter of its blind and unconditional support for Israel.
On June 17, Canada lost its second bid for the coveted UN Security Council seat, which, had it won, would have allowed Ottawa the opportunity to become a world leader, pushing its own agenda – and those of its allies – on the global stage.
The U.S. government is in a love affair with Israel, and nowhere is it more apparent than in the halls of the United Nations. Former U.S. Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley once asserted, “Nowhere has the UN’s failure been more consistent and more outrageous than its bias against our close ally Israel.”
President Trump boarding Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Md. July 10, 2020, en route to Miami. The administration notified the UN on July 6 that the US was withdrawing from the World Health Organization, effective exactly one year later. TIA DUFOUR/WHITE HOUSE
In a final straw to the current troubles between the World Health Organization and the United States, the Trump administration notified United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on July 6 of its withdrawal from the agency, effective July 6, 2021.
While Secretary-General António Guterres held a virtual press briefing on June 25, his spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric, above, moderated. Guterres spoke about the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the United Nations Charter and the relentless devastation of the Covid-19 pandemic. MANUEL ELIAS/UN PHOTO
Kelly Craft, the US envoy to the UN, arriving in the morning at the General Assembly Hall to cast her country’s secret ballot for various UN elections, June 17, 2020. By the afternoon, the new members of the Security Council were announced: India, Ireland, Mexico and Norway. The race between Djibouti and Kenya for the African seat goes to another round. ESKINDER DEBEBE/UN PHOTO
In New York City, protesters swarm the roadway portion of the Brooklyn Bridge, heading from the City Hall area of lower Manhattan into Brooklyn. The crowd stopped incoming traffic, but there was no violence, May 30, 2020. JOHN PENNEY
