UNGA77: turning challenges into opportunities
Today, President von der Leyen and High Representative/Vice-President Borrell, together with President of the European Council, Charles Michel, will join other world leaders for the opening session of the General Debate of the UN General Assembly. They will jointly meet the UN Secretary General António Guterres in the evening. President von der Leyen will participate in the Christchurch Call Leaders’ summit convened by the French President, Emmanuel Macron, and the Prime Minister of New Zealand, Jacinda Ardern. In the evening, the President will deliver a video message during the pledging event “Countdown to COP15: Landmark Leaders Event for a Nature Positive World”, which will be available on EbS (20:40 EST). Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans will deliver a speech at the same event at +/- 19:15 EST. Concluding an ambitious global deal to stop and reverse biodiversity loss at the COP15 Biodiversity Conference in Montréal later this year is a key priority for the EU. President von der Leyen will participate in the 2022 Goalkeepers Global Goal Awards ceremony, organised by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Executive Vice-President Timmermans will co-host, together with Chile and Germany, a Ministerial Meeting on Finding Common Ground for Ambitious COP27 Outcomes. He will deliver closing remarks at the UN ministerial meeting on Shaping an Africa-led Just and Equitable Energy Transition, and participate in a ministerial meeting on Climate and Development, organised by the UK and Rwanda. He will also hold a speech at Columbia University’s World Leaders Forum, and participate in the event ‘From Billions to Trillions – mobilizing financing for the green transition towards 2030′. High Representative/Vice-President Borrell will convene the leaders from the Western Balkans for the traditional informal meeting organised in the margins of the UN General Assembly. He will then represent the EU at the Pledging Conference of the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund. Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jutta Urpilainen, will participate in the Global Food Security summit, co-organised by the EU and other partners, as well as the High-Level event on ‘Transformation of Education in Africa’, co-organised by the EU, the African Union, UNICEF, UNESCO and the World Food Programme. Throughout the day, EU representatives will hold several bilateral meetings. More details on their individual agendas can be found on their websites. Yesterday, High Representative Borrell chaired the informal meeting of EU Foreign Ministers, which focussed on the global consequences of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and recent global developments. You can read the full press remarks of the High Representative’s press conference here. Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jutta Urpilainen, represented the European Commission at the Transforming Education Summit, calling on the international community to increase their investments in education and address the deep inequalities in access to education.