UN Exploring Options For Holding UNGA Session Due To Coronavirus: Spokesman

The United Nations is considering various options for its annual General Assembly session in September, including the possibility of holding the event online due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a world body's spokesman

UNITED NATIONS, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th May, 2020 ) :The United Nations is considering various options for its annual General Assembly session in September, including the possibility of holding the event online due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a world body's spokesman.

The high-level segment of the gathering, which debates key global issues, usually attracts over 100 world leaders and hundreds of other prominent figures triggering tough security measures that turn New York into a virtual fortress.

But the outbreak of coronavirus will not make the proceedings of this year's Assembly "business as usual." "What format the General Assembly will take -- virtual, non virtual, a combination -- different options are being looked at," Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the Secretary General, told reporters in response to a question.

The UN this year is commemorating the 75th anniversary of its establishment.

New York is the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. A total of 343,051 COVID-19 cases and more than 27,000 deaths have been reported in the state.

Due to the cornavirus pandemic, a number of international gatherings including those of the Group of Seven and the Group of 20 have been held through videoconferences or similar formats instead of as in-person meetings.

The 193-member UN General Assembly and the 15-member Security Council have been virtually operating for two months now and that is likely to continue until at least the end of June.

Dujarric, the UN spokesman, said the decisions about the format of the session will be made by the Member States. The Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, and the Secretariat will support the Member States in implementing whatever decision they take, he said.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is "obvious that we're not going to have business as usual in September, whether it's the General Assembly or other activities in our professional and personal lives," he said.

Dujarric was responding to a question about Guterres being misquoted in an interview as saying that the high-level General Assembly session scheduled for September was unlikely to happen. "What the Secretary General said was an obvious answer of common sense, that it's hard to imagine that the traditional General Assembly with thousands and thousands of people descending on New York and on the UN compound can be held this September as if nothing happened," he said.

He said the UN chief's remarks were taken a bit out of context.

On whether the high-level week of the UN General Assembly will proceed this year, spokesperson for President of the UN General Assembly Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, Reem Abaza said this month that discussions were underway with the UN medical service and the local authorities.

"But having these meetings depends on many elements. Some of them will be the situation of the COVID-19 pandemic around the world. And the other thing is the ability of the local authorities to receive all the high level delegations. So the discussions are ongoing," she said.

The novel coronavirus which originated from China's Wuhan city in December has killed 302,462 people and infected over 4.4 million worldwide. The US is the worst affected country with over 80,000 deaths reported in the country.