President returns after attending UNGA in New York

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who attended the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, has returned to the island, a short while ago. 

He had left for the United States on September 18 to attend the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly.

This year’s session was themed “Building resilience through hope – to recover from COVID-19, rebuild sustainability, respond to the needs of the planet, respect the rights of people, and revitalise the United Nations.”

President Rajapaksa addressed the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly held at the UN Headquarters in New York on September 22.

It was President Rajapaksa’s first address to the UN General Assembly and also the first foreign conference he is attending outside of the country.

The President also hold bilateral discussions with several Heads of State on a number of areas including economic, education and agriculture during the visit.

He also called on the Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN) Antonio Guterres at the UN Headquarters in New York.

The President had also addressed the Virtual Plenary of the UN Food Systems Summit which had commenced in New York on September 23 in parallel to the 76th Session of the UN General Assembly.

He also addressed the UN High-Level Dialogue on Energy on September 24. 

President Rajapaksa also attended a special commemorative event organized in front of the Manhattan Memorial in the United States to mark the 20th anniversary of terrorist attacks in Washington and New York.