The No. 2 candidate in the race to lead the United Nations told Envoy that recent reports about her Middle East record were intended to boost a rival—and sought to clarify her position on genocide. Ahead of what could be a decisive month in the race to appoint the next UN secretary-general, runner-up Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett…
Small states may have tiny diplomatic teams, but at the UN, careful priorities, close coordination and experienced ambassadors can give them influence far beyond their size. Xavier Espot, Andorra’s Head of Government, leads one of the world’s smallest countries. With a population of roughly 90,000 people, Andorra’s residents could fit in Manhattan’s neighborhood of Chinatown….
North Korea rejects denuclearization, Antigua and Barbuda makes a disability-rights appeal, and Sudan and the UAE trade accusations. “We have heard the last speaker of the general debate,” the president of the General Assembly said. And with that, UNGA’s general debate came to an end. The final day always feels different. As the speaker list…
Ahead of a fourth Security Council straw poll, a former Caribbean ambassador argues that the next secretary-general should come not simply from Latin America and the Caribbean, but from the Caribbean itself. The selection of a secretary-general is usually discussed in terms of regional rotation and professional experience. Much less is said about outlook. Yet…
Russia declares a new world order, China warns against protectionism, and the Holy See takes aim at autonomous weapons. Welcome to Day Five of the UN General Assembly’s high-level week, also known among the UN press corps as the annual Lavrov show. By now, the routine is almost scripted. In recent years, Russian Foreign Minister…
It’s day four of the UN General Assembly, and by now, most delegates still in town are running on little sleep and a lot of coffee. Pakistan’s prime minister was the day’s headliner, using the world stage to return US President Donald Trump’s earlier praise. Several small island developing states also took the rostrum. It…
Day three brought a mass walkout, a remote Palestinian address and plenty of old arguments, while the race for the next secretary-general remained eerily quiet. The decades-old conflict between Israelis and Palestinians took center stage in New York on Thursday, as the leaders of Palestine and Israel both addressed the General Assembly. As in 2025,…
On day 2 of UNGA, the biggest draw wasn’t a head of state While eyes were turned toward Washington for the US-China meeting, several influential leaders were speaking at the UN General Assembly, including Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky and Iran’s Masoud Pezeshkian. But the person who attracted the most attention wasn’t a head of state or…
NEW YORK, Sept. 2 — Envoy Magazine is proud to announce its partnership as a media partner of Unstoppable Africa 2026, the Global Africa Business Initiative’s flagship gathering, taking place Sept. 20 and 21 at the Marriott Marquis in New York. Unstoppable Africa 2026 is hosted by UN Secretary-General António Guterres and H.E. Mahmoud Ali…
Ivonne A-Baki’s last-minute entry adds some drama to the UN leadership race, bringing Tonga’s backing, a claimed friendship with Donald Trump and fresh questions about Washington’s influence and the transparency of the selection process. Three days before the Security Council’s next straw poll, a candidate calling herself Donald Trump’s friend crashed the race to lead…
Rival candidacies and ideological battles are turning what could have been a moment of regional unity into a test of Latin America’s deepest fractures. After more than 30 years, Latin America long awaited its chance to once again lead the UN. The last to hold the position of secretary-general of the organization, the Peruvian Javier…
Envoy magazine announces the first in a series of events launching its special issue, Who Will Lead the World Next?, beginning September 8, co-organized with the United Nations Association of New York, the Ralph Bunche Institute for International Studies, the Campaign for a Woman Secretary-General, and the Permanent Mission of Estonia to the United Nations….
Uganda’s Olara Otunnu will be included in the first Security Council straw poll despite not yet presenting his vision to the General Assembly. As the Security Council prepares to hold its first round of informal voting to decide who will be the next secretary-general, UN watchers warn that the process is off to a less-than-transparent…
Dear readers, In its 80 years of existence, the United Nations has had nine secretaries-general. This year, the Security Council and, ultimately, the General Assembly will decide who becomes the tenth. The UN’s first secretary-general, Trygve Lie, understood the burden of the office early. When he handed the job to Dag Hammarskjöld, he famously told…
As FIFA’s 2026 World Cup came to a close, human rights advocates say visa restrictions, immigration enforcement, and political interference undermined its promise to be the most inclusive tournament ever. Weeks before the tournament’s opening whistle, FIFA President Gianni Infantino boasted that the 2026 World Cup would be “the most inclusive ever.” But as Spain…
After nearly a decade leading UN peace operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix is looking back at a period in which peacekeeping has become smaller, more dangerous, and more politically constrained. Over the course of his term, the number of uniformed personnel in the field was cut in half, falling from more than 100,000 in 2017 to…
