September 23: Diplomacy drama at the UN

In which, the world gathers in New York, clouds gather over Canada-India relations, and momentum gathers for a grand bargain on Israel-Saudi Arabia relations.

Diplomacy drama at the UN

The UN General Assembly… assembled this week in New York. These gatherings provide the rare moments in global diplomacy when leaders who would otherwise not go near each other take advantage of diplomatic immunity to take swipes at each other in person… and get some deals done.

Leaders taking the floor at the UNGA to address the gathered delegates is often a scene of high drama and higher rhetoric, some of it not always friendly to the gathered audience. Highlights from this week: The Democratic Republic of Congo demanding the withdrawal of UN peacekeepers (despite a civil war continuing to rage); President Zelensky labeling Russia’s war as a genocide and calling on Russia to make peace so the world could… fight climate change? That’s a non sequitur if I ever heard one.

Behind the scenes, multilateral agreements were getting hammered out on fossil fuels, and pandemic responses, while the US and Iran managed a cash for prisoners swap.