Pandemic in Spotlight in Virtual UN General Assembly
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Pandemic in Spotlight in...
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Pandemic in Spotlight in Virtual UN General Assembly
Heads of state have emphasized the importance of global cooperation in tackling the COVID-19 pandemic during the United Nations General Assembly, which was held virtually this year.
By
ANITA YOSHIHARA
·4 minutes read
Heads of state have emphasized the importance of global cooperation in tackling the COVID-19 pandemic during the United Nations General Assembly, which was held virtually this year.
Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, in his first-ever address at the assembly, emphasized the urgency of cooperation, particularly in the health, social and economic sectors to handle the COVID-19 pandemic, which has hit a number of vital sectors hard.
In his virtual address broadcast Tuesday evening New York time, or Wednesday morning Jakarta time, President Jokowi also called for equal access to a safe COVID-19 vaccine at an affordable price and urged countries to work together and set aside rivalries to tackle the pandemic.
“A vaccine will be a game changer in the war against the pandemic,” the President said in his statement to the assembly.
Apart from the COVID-19 pandemic, President Jokowi also addressed the country’s support for Palestine, multilateralism and the urgency to strengthen collective global leadership.
Countries around the globe must collectively look for a solution to end the health crisis.
This year’s assembly adopted the theme “Reaffirming our Collective Commitment to Multilateralism” and was set against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic that has taken the lives of almost 1 million people worldwide. Countries around the globe must collectively look for a solution to end the health crisis.
Likewise, in their respective addresses broadcast during the assembly, other heads of state also emphasized the importance of strengthening multilateralism in handling the pandemic and its multidimensional impacts.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, for example, called for the suspension of interest payments on African countries’ external and public debt and for renewed focus on the eradication of global poverty. Furthermore, Chilean President Sebastian Pinera also called on powerful nations to work together and stop showing "a worrisome lack of leadership".
Meanwhile, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, echoing the statements of other heads of state, called for equal access to a COVID-19 vaccine, once found.
However, despite the spirit of collaboration expressed by developing countries, a number of heads of more powerful states encouraged a more unilateral spirit. Russian President Vladimir Putin, for example, stated that his country would offer its home-developed vaccine to the staff of the UN and its offices.
Whereas, Chinese President Xi Jinping said that his country was currently developing a number of potential COVID-19 vaccines, which are in phase 3 clinical trials. The Chinese government, according to President XI, was willing to provide its home-grown vaccine to the UN to tackle the pandemic. “As many as 1.4 billion people of China are fighting hard to handle the pandemic,” Xi said in his address.
US President Donald Trump said that his country had been fighting to tackle its biggest enemy, while referring to the coronavirus as the “Chinese virus”. Trump also called on the UN to hold China accountable for its actions related to the outbreak.
Trump, who will be facing a November re-election battle, however, did not stat that the United States was currently dealing with the world\'s highest official number of deaths and infections from the coronavirus. The US authorities recorded that the total number of COVID-19 fatalities stood at 200,000 on Tuesday Sept. 22.
Saeed Khan, director of global studies at Wayne State University in Michigan, US said the coronavirus had “become a metaphor for globalism versus nationalism.”
The greatest resistance is coming from hypernationalistic regimes.
The pandemic has brought out simmering divisions between countries and thus provided new subjects to argue over. “The greatest resistance is coming from hypernationalistic regimes,” he said.
Oxford University’s international relations professor Richard Caplan said that although there were “assaults” on multilateralism around the pandemic, particularly in the form of “vaccine nationalism,” there were also indications that COVID-19 could lead to more cooperation, even among longtime foes.
Caplan noted that earlier this year, Israel and the Palestinian Authority coordinated efforts between health ministries. Thousands of Palestinian workers were able to remain in Israel for longer periods so as to slow the spread of the virus.
“Unfortunately this unprecedented practical cooperation broke down, in part because of political tensions associated with the Trump [Middle East] peace plan and Israel’s moves towards annexation of Palestinian territories,” Caplan said.