PM Shehbaz Sharif meets US President Joe Biden ahead of UNGA speech

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday met United States President Joe Biden and his wife at the reception hosted by the American leader for the world leaders participating in the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

PM Shehbaz is currently in New York to attend the 77th session of UNGA, the first in-person session since 2019 after which all meetings were made virtual due to the pandemic. He is scheduled to address the UNGA today around 12pm (US local time), which can be streamed live at the official website of the UN at 9pm in Pakistan.

During the meeting, the premier lauded the flood relief efforts by the US and the continuous COVID-19 vaccine assistance and collaboration between the two countries.

PM to tell Pakistan's 'story of anguish and pain' at UNGA

In his address at the UNGA, the premier's focus will be on the challenge faced by Pakistan in the wake of the recent climate-induced catastrophic floods in the country, said Foreign Office Spokesperson Asim Iftikhar in a statement.

PM Shehbaz will outline concrete proposals to collectively tackle the existential threat posed by climate change. He will also share Pakistan’s position and perspective on regional and global issues of concern, including Jammu and Kashmir, which is one of the long-standing unresolved disputes on the UN agenda.

The FO spokesperson shared that PM Shehbaz will participate in the high-level debate at the UNGA from September 19 to 23.

The prime minister is accompanied by Minister for Foreign Affairs Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, other members of the cabinet and senior officials. He has been interacting with the world leaders and engaging in other interactions with media and different organisations.