President of the 72nd United Nations General Assembly Miroslav Lajcak speaks during the General Debate of the 72nd session of the United Nations General Assembly, at the UN headquarters in New York, on Sept. 19, 2017. The General Assembly of the United Nations on Tuesday kicked off its annual general debate, with heads of state and government representatives gathering at the UN headquarters to present their views about pressing world issues. (Xinhua/Li Rui)
United Nations General Assembly President Miroslav Lajcak delivered his first General Assembly speech, stressing that peace and prevention are at the center of the United Nations.
He said that "we need to recalibrate our efforts around peace and prevention, which is the only way to ensure that the United Nations is doing the job for which it was created."
Persistent poverty, growing inequalities, indiscriminate terrorist attacks, and worsening effects of climate change, are global challenges, all of which need the collective effort, he said.
