UN General Assembly Still Draws 193 States, Richard Gowan Says Ahead of High-Level Week
Updated
Updated · UN News · Sep 19
UN General Assembly Still Draws 193 States, Richard Gowan Says Ahead of High-Level Week
3 articles · Updated · UN News · Sep 19
Summary
193 UN member states still use the General Assembly as their main global मंच, Richard Gowan said ahead of high-level week, arguing it remains the place leaders turn to debate war, climate, development and human rights.
1945 founders expected the Security Council to dominate, he said, but Cold War deadlock quickly pushed major political debates into the Assembly, which drove action on Korea and created the first UN peacekeeping mission during the 1956 Suez crisis.
1960s decolonization transformed the body from an expected 80 or 90 members into a platform for newly independent states, helping elevate campaigns against apartheid and broader Global South demands on Palestine and the world economic order.
2005 reforms such as the Peacebuilding Commission showed the Assembly could still shape the UN after the Cold War, even as the G20 sidelined it during the 2008-09 financial crisis.
Record numbers of leaders still come each September, Gowan said, underscoring his view that despite rival forums like the G7 and BRICS, no alternative matches the Assembly for small and middle powers reacting to crises.