On 21-23 July 2022, the President of the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Maldives, Abdulla Shahid, will visit Latvia to discuss the present-day global security challenges, the international impact of Russia’s war in Ukraine, sustainable development and climate issues, as well as the state of bilateral relations between Latvia and the Maldives. This will be the first visit by the President of the UN General Assembly, who is also the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Maldives, to Latvia, thus making it especially important.
The visit will include meetings with senior Latvian officials and the Chairman of the Riga City Council, as well as a visit to the Riga Support Center for the Residents of Ukraine, and Riga Technical University. Mr. Shahid will take part in a roundtable discussion on achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals amid increasing global geopolitical challenges, which will be jointly organized by the Latvian Institute of International Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Library of Latvia.
Background information
All 193 UN member states are represented in the General Assembly, which acts as the main decision-making body of the UN.
The General Assembly convenes annually in September and meets throughout the year. At the beginning of each session, the General Assembly elects a new president on a rotating basis. Abdulla Shahid became the President of the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in September 2021, representing the Asia-Pacific region.