Slovak Foreign and European Affairs Minister Miroslav Lajčák has been elected by acclamation as President of the United Nations General Assembly for its upcoming 72nd session. Lajčák will take up the post on September 12 and will hold it for a period of one year. In his speech immediately after the vote, Lajčák addressed the General Assembly in New York with the six priorities he will have during his year in office, the first of which is for the UN to become more relevant to the billions it aims to serve.
"I do believe we can do more to bring the United Nations closer to the world's citizens. Nations around the globe continue to have high hopes in the United Nations. It's a key task of the General Assembly as its most representative organ to step up its efforts. It should make a real difference to the lives of ordinary people."
Lajčák also stated that he will pay equal attention to the "complex" global issue of migration, together with climate change, peace, human rights and sustainable development.
