(VOVworld) - The United Nations General Assembly today opened its 71^st session attended by representatives of 193 member states and international organizations. The session was chaired by President of the 71^st UN General Assembly Peter Thomson and Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

The newly appointed President Peter Thomson (C) chaired the 71st session of UN General Assembly. (Photo: Xinhua/VNA)

In his opening speech, Peter Thomson, a senior diplomat of Fiji, emphasized the importance and significance of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement on climate change. The newly appointed President expressed his commitment to finding new ways to resolve entrenched conflicts, diminish the atrocities of global terrorism, manage migrant and refugee flows, and end the many humanitarian crises.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon hailed the session’s theme “Sustainable Development Goals: a universal push to transform our world” and said it’s time to act on the Paris Agreement on climate change.