General debate of the eightieth session of the United Nations General Assembly

The general debate of the eightieth session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) opened on 23 September 2025 and ran until 29 September. Leaders from a number of member states addressed the UNGA.

General debate of the eightieth session of the United Nations General Assembly
← 79th 23–29 September 2025 81st →

General Assembly Hall at United Nations Headquarters, New York City
Host country	United Nations
Cities	New York City, United States
Venues	General Assembly Hall at the United Nations Headquarters
Participants	United Nations Member States
President	Annalena Baerbock

Organisation and subjects

The order of speakers is given first to member states, then observer states and supranational bodies. Any other observer entities will have a chance to speak at the end of the debate, if they so choose. Speakers will be put on the list in the order of their request, with special consideration for ministers and other government officials of similar or higher rank. According to the rules in place for the general debate, the statements should be in one of the United Nations official languages (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian or Spanish) and will be interpreted by interpreters. Each speaker is requested to provide advance copies of their statements to the conference officers to facilitate interpretation. The theme for the 2025 general debate was chosen by the President of the General Assembly, Annalena Baerbock, as: "Better together: 80 years and more for peace, development and human rights". On 24 September, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa addressed the general debate of the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly, becoming the first Syrian leader to address the UNGA since Nureddin al-Atassi in 1967.

Notable speeches

Colombia

Colombian President Gustavo Petro made a speech advocating climate action, criticizing the Trump administration, and calling for military intervention in the Gaza genocide. He advocated forming "an armed force to defend the lives of the Palestinian people" and accused the United States and NATO of "killing democracy and reviving tyranny and totalitarianism on a global scale."

Following his speech, Petro participated in a protest where he spoke on militarism in the United States, saying, "I ask all soldiers in the US not to point their rifles at humanity. Disobey Trump's order! Obey the order of humanity!" The United States revoked his visa shortly after.

Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a speech that received significant media attention and was met with significant backlash.

On 26 September, the day of the speech, protesters assembled in various locations throughout New York City, including the UN headquarters, Times Square, and outside the News Corp. Building, to protest the Gaza war and Netanyahu's address. Large crowds marching to the UN chanted "Free, free Palestine," and some signs read "END ALL U.S. AID TO ISRAEL!", "STOP STARVING GAZA", and "STOP THE GENOCIDE, FREE PALESTINE". Many of the protesters were Jewish Americans. Pro-Israel counter-protesters, including Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, confronted the protesters.

When it was time for Netanyahu's address, the majority of UNGA delegates collectively walked out in protest of Israel's actions during the Gaza war—"a sign of Israel's growing international isolation." The General Assembly chamber was "relatively empty" during his speech.

Netanyahu's speech primarily focused on promoting Israeli nationalism, discrediting allegations of human rights abuses, alleging widespread global antisemitism, and characterizing Israel as a victim of attacks by various forces in the Middle East. He made a joke in his speech about the UN being "not exactly a supporter of Israel" which was met with silence, after which he said, "you're supposed to laugh, by the way." Netanyahu said those who accuse Israel of genocide in Gaza are antisemitic and claimed a genocide is not happening in Gaza, even though there is consensus among experts Israel is committing genocide.

Netanyahu claimed Israeli intelligence had "hacked the smartphones of people in Gaza and would stream his speech to them directly." According to BBC sources in Gaza, phones were not actually affected. Netanyahu "surrounded Gaza with massive loudspeakers" to broadcast his speech according to CNN, telling Hamas to release the "remaining hostages or face death," even though the families of the hostages publicly opposed doing so.

United States

US President Donald Trump urged for an immediate cessation of hostilities in Gaza during the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). However, he expressed his belief that the acknowledgment of a Palestinian state by various Western nations was a reward for Hamas. He advocated that the release of Israeli captives was important in order to end the conflict.

Following Trump's address, the leaders of two prominent Muslim nations, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, spoke at the General Assembly. Subianto remarked, "No nation can subjugate the entire human race," adding, "While we may appear weak as individuals, our collective sense of injustice will empower us as a formidable force to confront it." Erdogan stated that there were individuals complicit with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who remained silent in the face of his acts of brutality.

Speaking schedule

Since 1955, Brazil and the United States have been the first and second countries to speak. Other countries follow according to a speaking schedule issued by the Secretariat.

The list of speakers is published and updated daily in the Journal of the United Nations, and on the general debate website.

23 September

Morning session

United Nations – António Guterres, Secretary-General (Report of the Secretary-General)
United Nations – Annalena Baerbock, President of the General Assembly (Opening statement)
Brazil – President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
United States – President Donald Trump
Indonesia – President Prabowo Subianto
Turkey – President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
Peru – President Dina Boluarte
Jordan – King Abdullah II
South Korea – President Lee Jae Myung
Qatar – Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani
Suriname – President Jennifer Geerlings-Simons
Lithuania – President Gitanas Nausėda
Portugal – President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa
Uruguay – President Yamandú Orsi
Slovenia – President Nataša Pirc Musar
Kazakhstan – President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev
South Africa – President Cyril Ramaphosa
Uzbekistan – President Shavkat Mirziyoyev

Afternoon session

Mongolia – President Ukhnaagiin Khürelsükh
Turkmenistan – President Serdar Berdimuhamedow
Chile – President Gabriel Boric
Tajikistan – President Emomali Rahmon
Lebanon – President Joseph Aoun
France – President Emmanuel Macron
Kyrgyzstan – President Sadyr Japarov
Colombia – President Gustavo Petro
Poland – President Karol Nawrocki
Mozambique – President Daniel Chapo
Vietnam – President Lương Cường
Angola – President João Lourenço
Liberia – President Joseph Boakai
Democratic Republic of the Congo – President Félix Tshisekedi
Iraq – President Abdul Latif Rashid
Nauru – President David Adeang
Japan – Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba
Morocco – Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch

24 September

Morning session

Spain – King Felipe VI
Ukraine – President Volodymyr Zelenskyy
Monaco – Prince Albert II
Iran – President Masoud Pezeshkian
Panama – President José Raúl Mulino
Czech Republic – President Petr Pavel
Switzerland – President Karin Keller-Sutter
Latvia – President Edgars Rinkēvičs
Kenya – President William Ruto
Paraguay – President Santiago Peña
Estonia – President Alar Karis
Argentina – President Javier Milei
Serbia – President Aleksandar Vučić
Syria – President Ahmed al-Sharaa
Croatia – President Zoran Milanović
Cyprus – President Nikos Christodoulides
Finland – President Alexander Stubb
Sierra Leone – President Julius Maada Bio

Afternoon session

Dominican Republic – President Luis Abinader
Sri Lanka – President Anura Kumara Dissanayake
Guatemala – President Bernardo Arévalo
Comoros – President Azali Assoumani
Namibia – President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah
Guyana – President Irfaan Ali
Kiribati – President Taneti Maamau
Senegal – President Bassirou Diomaye Faye
Slovakia – President Peter Pellegrini
Marshall Islands – President Hilda Heine
Central African Republic – President Faustin-Archange Touadéra
Albania – President Bajram Begaj
Congo – President Denis Sassou Nguesso
Madagascar – President Andry Rajoelina
Nigeria – Vice President Kashim Shettima
Kuwait – Crown Prince Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah
Australia – Prime Minister Anthony Albanese
Italy – Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni
Hungary – Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó
Costa Rica – Minister for Foreign Affairs and Worship Arnoldo André Tinoco

25 September

Morning session

Somalia – President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud
Montenegro – President Jakov Milatović
Palestine – President Mahmoud Abbas (via videoconference)
Yemen – Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council Rashad al-Alimi
North Macedonia – President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova
Haiti – Chairman of the Transitional Presidential Council Laurent Saint-Cyr
Georgia – President Mikheil Kavelashvili
Bolivia – President Luis Arce
Gabon – President Brice Oligui Nguema
Ghana – President John Mahama
Guinea-Bissau – President Umaro Sissoco Embaló
Eswatini – King Mswati III
Palau – President Surangel Whipps Jr.
Azerbaijan – President Ilham Aliyev
Bosnia and Herzegovina – Chairman of the Presidency Željko Komšić
Equatorial Guinea – Vice President Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue
South Sudan – Vice President Josephine Joseph Lagu
Gambia – Vice-President Muhammad B. S. Jallow
Liechtenstein – Deputy Prime Minister Sabine Monauni

Afternoon session

Libya – Chairman of the Presidential Council Mohamed al-Menfi
Botswana – President Duma Boko
Dominica – President Sylvanie Burton
Federated States of Micronesia – President Wesley Simina
Ethiopia – President Taye Atske Selassie
European Union – President of the European Council António Costa
Tanzania – Vice-President Philip Mpango
Uganda – Vice-President Jessica Alupo
Netherlands – Prime Minister Dick Schoof
Belgium – Prime Minister Bart De Wever
Chad – Prime Minister Allamaye Halina
Sudan – Transitional Prime Minister Kamil Idris
São Tomé and Príncipe – Prime Minister Américo Ramos
United Kingdom – Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy
Austria – Minister for European and International Affairs Beate Meinl-Reisinger
Mexico – Minister for Foreign Affairs Juan Ramón de la Fuente
Rwanda – Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Olivier Nduhungirehe
Ecuador – Minister for Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility Gabriela Sommerfeld
Sweden – Minister for Foreign Affairs Maria Malmer Stenergard
Cameroon – Minister for Foreign Affairs Lejeune Mbella Mbella
Norway – Minister for Foreign Affairs Espen Barth Eide

26 September

Morning session

Israel – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Pakistan – Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif
China – Premier Li Qiang
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines – Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves
Luxembourg – Prime Minister Luc Frieden
Ireland – Taoiseach Micheál Martin
Bangladesh – Muhammad Yunus
Malta – Prime Minister Robert Abela
Greece – Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis
Bhutan – Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay
Barbados – Prime Minister Mia Mottley
Solomon Islands – Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele
Papua New Guinea – Prime Minister James Marape
Jamaica – Prime Minister Andrew Holness
Belize - Prime Minister John Briceño

Afternoon session

Lesotho – Prime Minister Sam Matekane
Cape Verde – Prime Minister Ulisses Correia e Silva
Bulgaria – Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov
Mali – Prime Minister Abdoulaye Maïga
Andorra – Head of Government Xavier Espot Zamora
Trinidad and Tobago – Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar
Antigua and Barbuda – Prime Minister Gaston Browne
Fiji – Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka
Tuvalu – Prime Minister Feleti Teo
Tonga – Prime Minister ʻAisake Eke
Samoa – Deputy Prime Minister Toelupe Poumulinuku Onesemo
Zimbabwe – Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Amon Murwira
New Zealand – Minister for Foreign Affairs Winston Peters
Ivory Coast – Minister for Foreign Affairs Kacou Adom
Bahrain – Minister for Foreign Affairs Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani
Venezuela – Minister for Foreign Affairs Yván Gil
Mauritius – Minister for Foreign Affairs Dhananjay Ramful
Togo – Minister of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and African Integration Robert Dussey

27 September

Morning session

Bahamas – Prime Minister Philip Davis
Grenada – Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell
Burkina Faso – Prime Minister Jean Emmanuel Ouédraogo
Saint Kitts and Nevis – Prime Minister Terrance Drew
Niger – Prime Minister Ali Lamine Zeine
Laos – Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone
Armenia – Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan
Cambodia – Deputy Prime Minister Prak Sokhonn
Russia – Minister for Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov
Cuba – Minister for Foreign Affairs Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla
Brunei – Minister for Foreign Affairs II Erywan Yusof
Germany – Minister for Foreign Affairs Johann Wadephul
Iceland – Minister for Foreign Affairs Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir
India – Minister for External Affairs S. Jaishankar
Egypt – Minister for Foreign Affairs Badr Abdelatty
Belarus – Minister for Foreign Affairs Maxim Ryzhenkov
Mauritania – Minister for External Affairs Mohamed Salem Ould Merzoug
Romania – Minister for Foreign Affairs Oana Țoiu
Thailand – Minister for Foreign Affairs Sihasak Phuangketkeow

Afternoon session

San Marino – Secretary for Foreign and Political Affairs Luca Beccari
Saudi Arabia – Minister for Foreign Affairs Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud
Singapore – Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan
Oman – Minister for Foreign Affairs Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi
Malaysia – Minister for Foreign Affairs Mohamad Hasan
Maldives – Minister for Foreign Affairs Abdulla Khaleel
Tunisia – Minister for Foreign Affairs Mohammad Ali Nafti
Guinea – Minister-Secretary General of the Presidency Amara Camara
Philippines – Secretary for Foreign Affairs Tess Lazaro
United Arab Emirates – Minister of State Lana Nusseibeh

29 September

Eritrea – Minister for Foreign Affairs Osman Saleh
Saint Lucia – Minister for External Affairs Alva Baptiste
Zambia – Minister for Foreign Affairs Mulambo Hamakuni Haimbe
Canada – Minister for Foreign Affairs Anita Anand
Burundi – Minister for Foreign Affairs Edouard Bizimana
Algeria – Minister for Foreign Affairs Ahmed Attaf
Honduras – Minister for Foreign Affairs Javier Efraín Bú
Nicaragua – Minister for Foreign Affairs Denis Moncada
Holy See – Secretary for Relations with States Paul Richard Gallagher
North Korea – Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Kim Son Gyong
Moldova – Permanent Representative Gheorghe Leucă
Malawi – Permanent Representative Agnes Mary Chimbiri Molande
Nepal – Permanent Representative Lok Bahadur Thapa
Djibouti – Permanent Representative Mohamed Siad Doualeh
Denmark – Permanent Representative Christina Markus Lassen
Benin – Permanent Representative Marc Hermanne Araba
Vanuatu – Permanent Representative Odo Tevi
Timor-Leste – Permanent Representative Dionísio Babo Soares
United Nations – Annalena Baerbock, President of the General Assembly (Closing statement)
No representatives for Afghanistan, El Salvador, Myanmar, and Seychelles were on the agenda of the general debate.