Niger, acting president of the UN Security Council, will organize on September 24 a video conference of heads of state on the future of world governance after the pandemic, the Nigerian ambassador announced today.
“On the 24th we will have a debate at the summit on post-covid-19 world governance regarding the maintenance of international peace and security,” the ambassador, Abdou Abarry, told the press when presenting the Council’s work program for September.
This summit is held during the week of the UN General Assembly, which this year is being held mainly by videoconference due to the pandemic.
“It will be an occasion for our leaders to have political discussions on the need to adapt the current international system, embodied by the United Nations and the Security Council, to effectively address traditional threats to security, such as conflicts, but also new threats such as organized crime and pandemics, ”he said.
The summit will be chaired by the President of Niger, Mahamadou Issoufou, and the United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, and the President of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, will also speak, the ambassador said, adding that participation is expected from several world leaders.
Asked whether US President Donald Trump, a critic of international organizations and multilateralism, could represent the United States at the summit, the ambassador replied: “We expect all heads of state to participate and everyone will receive an invitation from the President of Niger ”.
Affirming that he is still waiting for confirmation of the presence of several heads of state, Abdou Abarry said that Germany, currently a non-permanent member of the Security Council, has already confirmed that he will be present “at the highest level”.
“Each country is free to decide who will represent it,” he said.
