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UNGA 81: Five key takeaways from general debate

Al Jazeera

The 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) concluded on Monday with artificial intelligence (AI), the Israel-Palestine conflict and the US-Israel war on Iran dominating world leaders' addresses during the general debate. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, in his final address before his term ends, warned that the future of the world would be shaped by four tests: AI, climate change, wars and inequality. That is why the UN Charter - and the work of the United Nations - matter more than ever," Guterres said. Speeches ranged from calls to reform the UN to appeals for upholding international law, as the global body has been undermined by the unilateral foreign policy pushed by United States President Donald Trump. Here are the biggest takeaways from this year's summit: The situation in Palestine was a key issue among members amid Israel's ongoing genocidal war on Gaza despite the so-called "ceasefire" and escalating settler pogroms in the occupied West Bank.


Who Will Be the Next Leader of the U.N.? Meet the Contenders

TIME - Tech

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Superpowers cannot solve world's problems, UN chief says in final general assembly address

The Guardian

Guterres said there needed to be'a recognition, especially by superpowers, that their power isn't so super. Guterres said there needed to be'a recognition, especially by superpowers, that their power isn't so super. Superpowers cannot solve world's problems, UN chief says in final general assembly address The world's fault lines have turned from cracks into canyons as superpowers show that they alone do not have the military, economic and technological power to guarantee security or solve the world's problems, the outgoing secretary general of the United Nations has said in his final address to the general assembly. In a speech laced with despair but also glimpses of defiant hope, Antรณnio Guterres said that over the last decade, largely spanning his 10-year period in office, "wars erupted with devastating consequences and dragged on with despicable cruelty. He continued: "Geopolitical divides have deepened.


Make the U.N. Great Again: The Uphill Struggle Facing the Next Secretary General

TIME - Tech

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Syria's leader says his country has transformed from 'an exporter of crisis.'

NYT > Middle East

On Wednesday, officials and diplomats sounded the alarm on A.I.'s ability to undermine the integrity of information and fabricate fake voice and video tapes. They also warned that it posed a threat to cybersecurity and would enable the rise of autonomous weapons. Still, some argued that, if used responsibly and with guardrails, A.I. potentially could also help foster peace and stability. Secretary General Antรณnio Guterres, who for the past year has championed efforts to regulate A.I., said that the Council had a responsibility to ensure the military use of artificial intelligence complies with international law and the U.N. Charter. "From design to deployment to decommissioning, A.I. systems must always comply with international law; military uses must be clearly regulated," Mr. Guterres said, before ending his speech with a warning and a call to action.


AI should run on 100% renewable energy by 2030, U.N. chief says

The Japan Times

Major tech firms should commit to fully powering data centers with renewable energy by 2030, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said. Big tech also must be responsible in its use of water for cooling, Guterres said Tuesday in New York City as he presented the U.N.'s new report on the energy transition, Seizing the Moment of Opportunity, together with the International Renewable Energy Agency. "AI can boost efficiency, innovation and resilience in energy systems, but it is also energy hungry," Guterres said in prepared remarks. "This is not sustainable -- unless we make it so."


Renewable energy hits global tipping point for even lower costs, UN says

Al Jazeera

The global switch to renewable energy has passed a "positive tipping point", and solar and wind power will become even cheaper and more widespread, according to two reports. Last year, 74 percent of the growth in electricity generated worldwide was from wind, solar and other green sources, according to a report compiled by multiple United Nations agencies called Seizing the Moment of Opportunity. It was published on Tuesday. It found that 92.5 percent of all new electricity capacity added to the grid worldwide in 2024 came from renewables. Meanwhile, sales of electric vehicles were up from 500,000 in 2015 to more than 17 million in 2024.


UN chief 'strongly condemns' Russian drone assault on Ukraine

Al Jazeera

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has condemned a Russian drone and missile attack against Ukraine this week that has been described as the largest such assault in the three-year war. In a statement on Saturday, Guterres's spokesperson said the Russian strikes "disrupted the power supply to the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, once again underlining the ongoing risks to nuclear safety". "The secretary-general is alarmed by this dangerous escalation and the growing number of civilian casualties," the statement read. Ukrainian officials said Moscow fired more than 500 drones and 11 missiles at the capital Kyiv overnight into Friday in an attack that killed one person, injured at least 23 others and damaged buildings across the city. The sounds of air raid sirens, kamikaze drones and booming detonations reverberated until dawn.


UN revisits 'killer robot' regulations as concerns about AI-controlled weapons grow

FOX News

The CyberGuy Kurt Knutsson joins'Fox & Friends' to discuss the U.S.-Saudi investment summit and the debate over regulation as artificial intelligence continues to advance. Several nations met at the United Nations (U.N.) on Monday to revisit a topic that the international body has been discussing for over a decade: the lack of regulations on lethal autonomous weapons systems (LAWS), often referred to as "killer robots." This latest round of talks comes as wars rage in Ukraine and Gaza. While the meeting was held behind closed doors, U.N. Secretary-General Antรณnio Guterres released a statement doubling down on his 2026 deadline for a legally binding solution to threats posed by LAWS. "Machines that have the power and discretion to take human lives without human control are politically unacceptable, morally repugnant and should be banned by international law," Guterres said in a statement.


Warmongers and authoritarians suffocating global human rights, warns UN

Al Jazeera

Warmongers and authoritarians are "suffocating" human rights across the world, the chief of the United Nations has warned. Speaking at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Monday, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres depicted a world where human rights were "on the ropes and being pummelled hard". Highlighting the devastating effects of conflicts, including in the Middle East, Ukraine and Congo, Guterres noted abuses linked to economics, technology, climate change, migration, and gender. Guterres called out a "morally bankrupt global financial system" that favours profits over planet protections. He also spoke of those who might exploit artificial intelligence to harm people, and leaders who seek to demonise migrants or restrict women's rights.