The General Debate of the sixty-ninth session of the United Nations General Assembly commenced on 24 September 2014 and ended on 30 September 2014. Leaders from a number of member states addressed the UNGA.
Organisation and subjects
The order of speakers is given first to member states, then observer states and supranational bodies. Any other observers entities will have a chance to speak at the end of the debate, if they so choose. Speakers will be put on the list in the order of their request, with special consideration for ministers and other government officials of similar or higher rank. According to the rules in place for the General Debate, the statements should be in of the United Nations official languages of Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian or Spanish, and will be translated by the United Nations translators. Each speaker is requested to provide 20 advance copies of their statements to the conference officers to facilitate translation and to be presented at the podium. Though there is no time limit for speeches, a voluntary guideline of 15 minutes is requested. The chosen theme for the debate is "Delivering on and Implementing a Transformative post-2015 Development Agenda."
The rest of the speaking schedule in the General Assembly Chamber is as follows:
Morning schedule
United Nations – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
United Nations – 69th Session of the United Nations General Assembly – President Sam Kutesa
Brazil – President Dilma Rousseff
United States – President Barack Obama
Uganda – President Yoweri Museveni
Spain – King Felipe VI
Mauritania – President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz
Chile – President Michelle Bachelet
South Korea – President Park Geun-hye
Qatar – Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani
Armenia – President Serzh Sargsyan
Egypt – President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi
Jordan – King Abdullah II
France – President François Hollande
Mexico – President Enrique Peña Nieto
Finland – President Sauli Niinistö
Indonesia – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
Argentina – President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner
Turkey – President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
Afternoon schedule
Bolivia – President Evo Morales
Rwanda – President Paul Kagame
Dominican Republic – President Danilo Medina
Kenya – President Uhuru Kenyatta
Costa Rica – President Luis Guillermo Solís
Mongolia – President Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj
Nigeria – President Goodluck Jonathan
Honduras – President Juan Orlando Hernández
Montenegro – President Filip Vujanović
South Africa – President Jacob Zuma
Switzerland –President Didier Burkhalter
Chad – President Idriss Déby
Estonia – President Toomas Hendrik Ilves
Equatorial Guinea – President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo
Sri Lanka – President Mahinda Rajapaksa
Venezuela – President Nicolás Maduro
United Kingdom – Prime Minister David Cameron
Denmark – Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt
Ukraine – Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk
Turkmenistan – Prime Minister Rashid Meredov
Morning schedule
Niger – President Mahamadou Issoufou
Slovakia – President Andrej Kiska
Ghana – President John Dramani Mahama
Iran – President Hassan Rouhani
Slovakia – President Andrej Kiska (scheduled)
Ghana – President John Dramani Mahama (scheduled)
Tunisia – President Moncef Marzouki
Colombia – President Juan Manuel Santos
Madagascar – President Hery Rajaonarimampianina
Croatia – President Ivo Josipović
Brunei – Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah
Zimbabwe – President Robert Mugabe
Peru – President Ollanta Humala
Japan – Prime Minister Shinzo Abe
Ethiopia – Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn
Italy – Prime Minister Matteo Renzi
European Union – President Herman Van Rompuy
Antigua and Barbuda – Prime Minister Gaston Browne
Kuwait – Prime Minister Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah
Romania – Prime Minister Victor Ponta
Australia – Prime Minister Tony Abbott
Afternoon schedule
Gambia – President Yahya Jammeh
Poland – President Bronisław Komorowski
Latvia – President Andris Bērziņš
Gabon – President Ali Bongo Ondimba
Panama – President Juan Carlos Varela
Democratic Republic of the Congo – President Joseph Kabila
Bulgaria – President Rossen Plevneliev
Albania – President Bujar Nishani
Hungary – President János Áder
Malawi – President Peter Mutharika
Seychelles – President James Michel (scheduled)
Nauru – President Baron Waqa
Palau – President Tommy Remengesau
Tanzania – President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete
Canada – Prime Minister Stephen Harper
Netherlands – Prime Minister Mark Rutte
Tajikistan – Prime Minister Kokhir Rasulzoda
Timor-Leste – Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão
Norway – Prime Minister Erna Solberg
Morocco – Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane
Moldova – Deputy Prime Minister Natalia Gherman
Cameroon – Foreign Minister Pierre Moukoko Mbonjo
Senegal – Foreign Minister Mankeur Ndiaye
Morning schedule
Namibia – President Hifikepunye Pohamba
Guyana – President Donald Rabindranauth Ramotar
Cyprus – President Nicos Anastasiades
Lithuania – President Dalia Grybauskaitė
Ivory Coast – President Alassane Ouattara
Slovenia – President Borut Pahor
Guinea – President Alpha Condé
El Salvador – President Salvador Sánchez Cerén
Congo – President Denis Sassou Nguesso
Palestine – President Mahmoud Abbas
Bosnia and Herzegovina – Member of the Presidency Nebojša Radmanović
Samoa – Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi
Iraq – President Mohammed Fuad Masum
Luxembourg – Prime Minister Xavier Bettel
Pakistan – Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif
Malta – Prime Minister Joseph Muscat
Lebanon – Acting President/Prime Minister Tammam Salam
Malaysia – Prime Minister Mohammed Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak
Afternoon schedule
Somalia – President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud
Serbia – President Tomislav Nikolić
Haiti – President Michel Joseph Martelly
Micronesia – President Emanuel Mori
Dominica – President Charles Savarin
Macedonia – President Gjorge Ivanov
Comoros – President Ikililou Dhoinine
Marshall Islands – President Christopher Loeak
Kiribati – President Anote Tong
Nepal – Prime Minister Sushil Koirala
Georgia – Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili
Belgium – Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo
Trinidad and Tobago – Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar
Azerbaijan – Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov
Kazakhstan – Foreign Minister Erlan Idrissov
Uzbekistan – Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov
Sudan – Foreign Minister Ali Ahmed Karti
Guatemala – Foreign Minister Carlos Raúl Morales
Zambia – Foreign Minister Harry Kalaba
Morning schedule
Tonga – King Tupou VI
Mali – President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta
South Sudan – President Salva Kiir
Central African Republic – President Catherine Samba-Panza
South Sudan – President Salva Kiir Mayardit
Burundi – Vice President Prosper Bazombanza
India – Prime Minister Narendra Modi
Bangladesh – Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina
Fiji – Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama
Tuvalu – Prime Minister Enele Sopoaga
Libya – President of the House of Representatives Agila Saleh Essa Gwaider
Thailand – Deputy Prime Minister General Tanasak Patimapragorn
Germany – Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier
Russia – Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov
China – Foreign Minister Wang Yi
San Marino – Foreign Minister Pasquale Valentini
United Arab Emirates – Foreign Minister Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan
Cuba – Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla
Austria – Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz
Afternoon schedule
Andorra – Prime Minister Antoni Martí Petit
Vietnam – Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh
Greece – Deputy Prime Minister Evangelos Venizelos
North Korea – Foreign Minister Ri Su Yong
Algeria – Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra
Mozambique – Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz
Portugal – Foreign Minister Rui Machete
Czech Republic – Foreign Minister Lubomír Zaorálek
Jamaica – Foreign Minister Arnold Nicholson
Afghanistan – Foreign Minister Zarar Ahmad Osmani
Morning schedule
Sao Tome and Principe – Prime Minister Gabriel Arcanjo Ferreira da Costa
Angola – Vice President Manuel Vicente
Swaziland – Prime Minister Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini
Guinea-Bissau – Prime Minister Domingos Simões Pereira
Vanuatu – Prime Minister Joe Natuman
Holy See – Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin
Syria – Deputy Prime Minister Walid Al-Moualem
Laos – Deputy Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith
Bahrain – Foreign Minister Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa
Liechtenstein – Foreign Minister Aurelia Frick
Israel – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Iceland – Foreign Minister Gunnar Bragi Sveinsson
Botswana – Foreign Minister Phandu Skelemani
Myanmar – Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin
Philippines – Foreign Minister Albert Del Rosario
Afternoon schedule
Burkina Faso – Foreign Minister Djibrill Ypènè Bassolé
Cambodia – Deputy Prime Minister Hor Namhong
New Zealand – Foreign Minister Murray McCully
Singapore – Foreign Minister K. Shanmugam
Ireland – Foreign Minister Charles Flanagan
Uruguay – Foreign Minister Luis Almagro
Monaco – Foreign Minister José Badia
Sierra Leone – Foreign Minister Samura Kamara
Liberia – Foreign Minister Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan
Grenada – Foreign Minister Nickolas Steele
St. Vincent and the Grenadines – Foreign Minister Camillo Gonsalves
Yemen – Foreign Minister Jamal Abdullah Al-Sallal
Lesotho – Foreign Minister Mohlabi Kenneth Tsekoa
Seychelles – Foreign Minister Jean-Paul Adam
St. Kitts and Nevis – Foreign Minister Patrice Nisbett
Togo – Minister of State Robert Dussey
Sweden – Permanent Representative Mårten Grunditz
Morning schedule
Suriname – Foreign Minister Winston Lackin
Eritrea – Foreign Minister Osman Mohammed Saleh
Oman – Foreign Minister Yousef Bin Al-Alawi Bin Abdulla
Belarus – Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei
Belize – Foreign Minister Wilfred Elrington
Barbados – Foreign Minister Maxine Pamela Ometa McClean
Nicaragua – Foreign Minister Samuel Santos López
Maldives – Foreign Minister Mohamed Waheed
Bahamas – Foreign Minister Frederick A. Mitchell
Bhutan – Foreign Minister Lyonpo Rinzin Dorje
St. Lucia – Foreign Minister Alva Romanus Baptiste
Papua New Guinea – Foreign Minister Rimbink Pato
Ecuador – Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Leonardo Arizaga
Benin – Permanent Representative Jean-Francis Régis Zinsou
Solomon Islands – Permanent Representative Collin Beck
Mauritius – Permanent Representative Milan Jaya Nyamrajsingh Meettarbhan
Paraguay – Permanent Representative José Antonio Dos Santos
Cape Verde – Foreign Minister Jorge Alberto Silva Borges
Member states have the option to reply to comments on the day (or even to the days prior), but are limited to 10 minutes for the first response and five minutes for the second response. All speeches are made from the floor, as opposed to the podium for the General Debate.
Ukraine thanked other member states for support amidst the War in Donbass. It said it had provided personalised multimedia albums about the situation in the country and the need to maintain territorial integrity. It was surprised by statements from Russia saying the latter were trying to convince others about the "occupation of Crimea" which it claimed was an aggressive action instead of a reaction to the actions of the West. The delegation alleged that the truth was supposedly that Ukraine had nothing to do with the European Union or the West, including the United States, but that Russian barbarism caused the actions in Ukraine. Russia then "grabbed" Crimea and now resorts to some historical reasoning while violating international law. Instead it said the Kremlin launched the "brutal war" not against the West but Ukraine, which is weak and whose budget was shamelessly spoilt by the "corrupt regime" that was ousted earlier in the year. They said that Ukraine is a part of the E.U. family and is sovereign, democratic and in concern for human rights. The delegate said a UN resolution on the non-interference in states was adopted by the UNGA long time ago and was in 1981 it upheld the resolution which called for refraining from intervention directed against another state. The delegation concluded that it was time to start respecting the decisions of the UNGA and binding norms of international law. Finally, despite the aggressive action by Russia against Ukraine the people of the country shared commonalities.
Russia responded in saying that was just heard from Ukraine were unjustified accusations aimed at Russia. It is thus regrettable that Ukraine is striving to use "this high rostrum of the UN...to advance its ideas and perceptions that are far from the truth. The rhetoric of the Ukrainian delegation...not aligned to...[reality]." Russia's view to the events in Ukraine had been laid out earlier and does need to be repeated except that it seeks to. reestablish peace on the basis of a broad dialogue which Russia will assist in.
President Sam Kutesa closed the General Debate for the year in summation of the comments. He said that the past week has been used to "share hopes and visions of the future," including the "challenges confronting us." He thanked each and every speaker: 117 heads of state and government, 3 vice president's, 56 ministers, 27 chairs of delegations and 1 head of state/observer state; this has indicated the importance attached to the organization and the event.
The topics focused on the theme of the debate by many speakers, particularly to build on momentum so as to provide tangible benefits. Several speakers also called for addressed the need for more global commitments. Yet other topics included: many calls for a fair global trading regime and better global economic governance; peace and security issues that are prominent, including the many speakers who talked of increased threats by "terrorists" like ISIS, Al Qaeda, Al Shabaab and Boko Haram which indicated a need to such groups; there were calls to optimise synergy between the UN and regional organisations; the 2014 West African Ebola outbreak also took prominence with calls for more coordinated action, expressions of serious concern were given in regards to the loss of life and social effects, particularly in Liberia and Sierra Leone; promote of the rule of law, good governance and respect for human rights was also emphasised, including international law norms and principles, peace and security and human rights as one of the UN's pillars; many also reiterated calls for UNSC reform.
As such, he Kutesa concluded that the UNGA serves as important international forum to come together and explore world affairs. It thus serves as a one of a kind institution. The UNGA on the global stage serves as a unique opportunity for mutual engagements. He notably suggested the addition of sideline meetings to focus on the discussed matters during the General Debate. Finally he called for the delegations to approach the upcoming year's work in the spirit of cooperation to make a difference and that "as seen at the General Debate, the work is cut out for us" and there is then a need to take on responsibility and challenges to make a "real and meaningful change." With that, he concluded the agenda item number eight.
