Follow our live coverage on the UN General Assembly
The annual United Nations General Assembly begins on Tuesday at the world body's headquarters in New York, with global leaders gathering to address pressing international issues.
This year's high-level discussions are expected to focus heavily on the continuing conflicts in Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine, as well as the escalating climate crisis.
The event kicks off with a summit aimed at galvanising efforts towards the Summit of the Future, set for September 22-23.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has called the summit a "once-in-a-generation" opportunity to renew multilateral co-operation. Delegates are expected to endorse the "Pact for the Future", a far-reaching document designed to reform the UN system to better address 21st-century challenges.
The General Debate, the key event of the session, begins on Tuesday, September 24, with speeches from leaders of the UN’s 193 member states. Each country will be given 15 to 20 minutes to speak before the international community.
As is tradition, Brazil’s president will be the first to take the podium, followed by the US President Joe Biden. Over the course of six days, a succession of world leaders will address the assembly, laying out their national priorities and views on global affairs.
This is the complete schedule of countries due to speak at the 79th UN General Assembly in New York:
Tuesday, September 24
Morning: Brazil, US, Turkey, Jordan, Guatemala, Switzerland, Colombia, Qatar, South Africa, Maldives, Uzbekistan, Lithuania, Tajikistan, Sierra Leone and Serbia.
Afternoon: Peru, Kyrgyzstan, Algeria, Argentina, Morocco, El Salvador, Iran, Estonia, Chile, Latvia, Paraguay, Vietnam, Angola, Poland, Monaco, Nauru and Nigeria.
Wednesday, September 25
Morning: Mongolia, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Ghana, Bulgaria, Suriname, Cyprus, Ecuador, Slovakia, Namibia, Libya, Dominican Republic, Madagascar, Romania, Brunei Darussalam, Democratic Republic of Congo, Honduras and France.
Afternoon: Cabo Verde, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Finland, Guyana, Panama, Mauritania, Senegal, Liberia, Togo, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Dominica, Marshall Islands, Guinea-Bissau and Bolivia.
Thursday, September 26
Morning: Malawi, Cameroon, Kenya, Yemen, Burundi, Gabon, Central African Republic, Palestine, Gambia, Haiti, Sudan, Sao Tome and Principe, Lesotho, South Sudan, North Macedonia, Uruguay and Fiji.
Afternoon: Micronesia, Djibouti, Mauritius, European Union, Cote d'Ivoire, Palau, Equatorial Guinea, Kuwait, Bahrain, Portugal, Japan, Netherlands, Armenia, Iraq, Israel, Georgia, Greece, Barbados and Nepal.
Friday, September 27
Morning: Slovenia, Pakistan, Italy, Spain, Bhutan, UK, Andorra, Bangladesh, Moldova, Canada, Vanuatu, Croatia, Papua New Guinea, Ireland, Malta and the Bahamas.
Afternoon: Montenegro, Antigua and Barbuda, Albania, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Laos, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Timor Leste, Tonga, Somalia, Eswatini, Tanzania and Chad.
Saturday, September 28
Morning: Grenada, Uganda, Guinea, Holy See, China, Kazakhstan, Cambodia, New Zealand, Luxembourg, Mali, Indonesia, Russia, Mexico, Norway, Hungary, Singapore, Cuba, Philippines, San Marino, Malaysia and Australia.
Afternoon: UAE, Turkmenistan, Germany, Liechtenstein, Saudi Arabia, Zambia, Sweden, Austria, India, Belarus, Iceland, Oman, Denmark, Thailand, Azerbaijan, Trinidad and Tobago, Ethiopia and Belize.
Monday, September 30
Morning: Syria, Venezuela, Eritrea, Nicaragua, Benin, Lebanon, Tunisia, Egypt, Costa Rica, Niger, South Korea, Mozambique, Burkina Faso, Rwanda, Belgium, Saint Lucia, Jamaica, Congo and Sri Lanka.
Afternoon: Myanmar, North Korea and Kiribati.
The order of nations can change on a daily basis.
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Power: 819hp
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Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
- If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
- By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
- Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
- Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Brolliology: A History of the Umbrella in Life and Literature
By Marion Rankine
Melville House
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
HAEMOGLOBIN DISORDERS EXPLAINED
Thalassaemia is part of a family of genetic conditions affecting the blood known as haemoglobin disorders.
Haemoglobin is a substance in the red blood cells that carries oxygen and a lack of it triggers anemia, leaving patients very weak, short of breath and pale.
The most severe type of the condition is typically inherited when both parents are carriers. Those patients often require regular blood transfusions - about 450 of the UAE's 2,000 thalassaemia patients - though frequent transfusions can lead to too much iron in the body and heart and liver problems.
The condition mainly affects people of Mediterranean, South Asian, South-East Asian and Middle Eastern origin. Saudi Arabia recorded 45,892 cases of carriers between 2004 and 2014.
A World Health Organisation study estimated that globally there are at least 950,000 'new carrier couples' every year and annually there are 1.33 million at-risk pregnancies.
World record transfers
1. Kylian Mbappe - to Real Madrid in 2017/18 - €180 million (Dh770.4m - if a deal goes through)
2. Paul Pogba - to Manchester United in 2016/17 - €105m
3. Gareth Bale - to Real Madrid in 2013/14 - €101m
4. Cristiano Ronaldo - to Real Madrid in 2009/10 - €94m
5. Gonzalo Higuain - to Juventus in 2016/17 - €90m
6. Neymar - to Barcelona in 2013/14 - €88.2m
7. Romelu Lukaku - to Manchester United in 2017/18 - €84.7m
8. Luis Suarez - to Barcelona in 2014/15 - €81.72m
9. Angel di Maria - to Manchester United in 2014/15 - €75m
10. James Rodriguez - to Real Madrid in 2014/15 - €75m
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Recent winners
2002 Giselle Khoury (Colombia)
2004 Nathalie Nasralla (France)
2005 Catherine Abboud (Oceania)
2007 Grace Bijjani (Mexico)
2008 Carina El-Keddissi (Brazil)
2009 Sara Mansour (Brazil)
2010 Daniella Rahme (Australia)
2011 Maria Farah (Canada)
2012 Cynthia Moukarzel (Kuwait)
2013 Layla Yarak (Australia)
2014 Lia Saad (UAE)
2015 Cynthia Farah (Australia)
2016 Yosmely Massaad (Venezuela)
2017 Dima Safi (Ivory Coast)
2018 Rachel Younan (Australia)
The Settlers
Director: Louis Theroux
Starring: Daniella Weiss, Ari Abramowitz
Rating: 5/5
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if you go
The flights
Etihad, Emirates and Singapore Airlines fly direct from the UAE to Singapore from Dh2,265 return including taxes. The flight takes about 7 hours.
The hotel
Rooms at the M Social Singapore cost from SG $179 (Dh488) per night including taxes.
The tour
Makan Makan Walking group tours costs from SG $90 (Dh245) per person for about three hours. Tailor-made tours can be arranged. For details go to www.woknstroll.com.sg
Tuesday's fixtures
Kyrgyzstan v Qatar, 5.45pm
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Bio
Hometown: Bogota, Colombia
Favourite place to relax in UAE: the desert around Al Mleiha in Sharjah or the eastern mangroves in Abu Dhabi
The one book everyone should read: 100 Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. It will make your mind fly
Favourite documentary: Chasing Coral by Jeff Orlowski. It's a good reality check about one of the most valued ecosystems for humanity
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
UK-EU trade at a glance
EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
Smoother border management with use of e-gates
Cutting red tape on import and export of food
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Zayed Sustainability Prize
The five pillars of Islam
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How it works
1) The liquid nanoclay is a mixture of water and clay that aims to convert desert land to fertile ground
2) Instead of water draining straight through the sand, it apparently helps the soil retain water
3) One application is said to last five years
4) The cost of treatment per hectare (2.4 acres) of desert varies from $7,000 to $10,000 per hectare
Batti Gul Meter Chalu
Producers: KRTI Productions, T-Series
Director: Sree Narayan Singh
Cast: Shahid Kapoor, Shraddha Kapoor, Divyenndu Sharma, Yami Gautam
Rating: 2/5
