Foreign Minister attends UN General Assembly session opening

New York, Sep. 20 (BNA): The UN General Assembly opened its 71st session at its headquarters in New York today morning where the Minister of Foreign Affairs Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Khalifa took part alongside world leaders and heads of delegations. The session is focusing on a number of key issues affecting the present and the future of the international community, including the situation in Syria, Yemen and Libya as well as the Palestinian and the refugees issues. In his speech, the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, affirmed the importance of the Paris Agreement to achieve sustainable development and improve the future, praising the progress made in regards to climate change and expressing his hope for the implementation of the agreement. He highlighted the security threats facing countries across the world and armed conflicts that resulted to extremism and violence, pointing out that the Syrian crisis has claimed the largest number of lives, stressing the importance of a political solution to this crisis, calling on all stakeholders to work to achieve this goal. President of the UN 71st Session of the General Assembly, Peter Thomson, addressed the UN Sustainable Development Plan 2030, which aims to provide a better living to all societies in the coming period. Key speakers on the first day of the session include the President of the Republic of Brazil, Michel Temer, US President Barack Obama, the Amir of Qatar, Shaikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, King Abdullah II of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, in addition to the Kingdom of Morocco, the French Republic, the United Kingdom and the Turkish Republic and a number of heads of delegations taking part in the 71st session of the UN General Assembly. The meetings of the UN General Assembly are considered to be an opportunity to exchange views on key problems and challenges facing the international community, to reach an international response to resolve these problems and overcome the challenges. (MOFA)