From 19 to 24 September, Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu is in New York for the opening week of UN General Assembly’s 77th session, dozens of bilateral meetings and side events focused on Ukraine. President Alar Karis heads the Estonian delegation.
The foreign minister said Estonia’s support for Ukraine was unwavering and we would continue all efforts to help Ukraine win the war that has been waged against them for more than six months. “This is why our priority at the upcoming General Assembly is to call on the wider UN membership to offer Ukraine every assistance and make sure Russia is held legally accountable for its brutality in Ukraine. Russia must not begin to feel impunity and all organisers of crimes of aggression must be held internationally accountable. To this end, Estonia is also advocating for the creation of an international special tribunal,” Reinsalu said.
Reinsalu attends the annual foreign ministers meeting of the International Criminal Court (ICC), a side event on the legal responsibility of Russia and a discussion of Ukraine’s donors on education. During the opening week of the UN General Assembly’s 77th session, Reinsalu will have dozens of bilateral meetings with foreign ministers. He will also meet with Secretary General António Guterres together with the presidents and foreign ministers of Baltic countries, and with Under-Secretary General Rosemary DiCarlo.
Today, On 19 September, Estonia and Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya will organise a an event on the sidelines of the opening week of the 77th session of the UN General Assembly with a focus on the crisis in Belarus and the impact it has on the region and global security. Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu said Estonia continued its steadfast support for the democratic aspirations of the people of Belarus and we have made sure the grave violations of human rights and international law by the Belarusian authorities would not go unnoticed.Read more about the side event: https://vm.ee/en/news/estonia-and-tsikhanouskaya-organise-event-belarus-during-opening-week-un-general-assembly
Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu’s programme:
On Monday 19 September, Reinsalu meets with EU foreign ministers and has bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Ghana, Liechtenstein, North Macedonia and Kosovo, meets with Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo, and with the secretary general of the Union for the Mediterranean and the American Jewish Committee. Estonia is also organising an international event on Belarus on the sidelines of the opening week, with a focus on the crisis in Belarus and its impact on the region and global security.
On Tuesday 20 September, the foreign minister attends the opening of the 77th session of the General Assembly and a discussion of Ukraine’s donors on education. There is also a meeting of B9 foreign ministers with the deputy secretary of state of the United States, and Reinsalu has a bilateral meeting with the foreign minister of Andorra. Reinsalu is also attending a reception hosted by Estonia’s Consulate General in New York and the Estonian House.
On Wednesday 21 September, Baltic presidents and foreign ministers meet with the secretary-general of the UN, and Reinsalu and President Karis also meet with their Ecuadorian colleagues. The foreign minister has bilateral meetings with his Indian, UAE and Serbian counterparts and the coalition of Jewish organisations. Reinsalu is also speaking at a side-event on children in Belarus, co-hosted by the Permanent Mission of Estonia, EU Delegation.
On Thursday 22 September, Reinsalu attends the annual meeting of the ministerial network of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the side event focused on the legal accountability of Russia in its war against Ukraine. Reinsalu has bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Mozambique, Türkiye and Tunisia.