UN General Assembly features diverse remarks from lesser-heard world leaders
During the fifth day of the 2026 UN General Assembly, several heads of state and ministers offered brief reflections on confidence, creativity, peace and national aspirations.
The 2026 United Nations General Assembly’s fifth day gave a platform to several officials whose comments often escape mainstream coverage. Prince Abdul Mateen, Brunei’s foreign minister, said rebuilding confidence does not mean reverting to a vanished world. Thorgerdur Katrín Gunnarsdóttir, Iceland’s foreign minister, argued that creativity thrives where societies allow it.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s secretary of state, asserted that peace should be viewed positively. Moldova’s prime minister, Vasile Tofan, noted that while the nation may not become a great power, it possesses all the ingredients to be a great country. Prime minister Francisco Avelino Vieira de Carvalho of Cabo Verde reminded listeners that a territory’s size should never limit its dreams, and Belize’s prime minister, John Briceño, called for the smallest voices to be heard as clearly as the largest. These remarks collectively underscored themes of optimism, inclusivity and forward-looking ambition.
Why it matters
The speeches highlight perspectives from smaller nations, shaping global dialogue at a key UN forum.
How this story developed
- Sep 11 Modi and Putin share a private car ride in Delhi ahead of BRICS summit
- Sep 11 The two leaders shared a car ride to the INNOPROM India exhibition after their bilateral talks.
- Sep 11 BRICS expanded to eleven member countries.
- Sep 12 The 18th BRICS summit opened in New Delhi with India presiding and leaders including Xi Jinping arriving for the meeting.
- Sep 12 Modi called for immediate UN Security Council reform and urged the Global South to become a rule‑shaper at the summit's opening.
- Sep 12 Chinese President Xi Jinping called on BRICS nations at the New Delhi summit to support peace initiatives in the Middle East, saying the war harms the international community.
- Sep 12 The two leaders met on the margins of the BRICS Summit. Vietnam is a partner country in the BRICS grouping.
- Sep 12 Leaders adopted the Delhi Declaration and Modi proposed a continuity mechanism to implement summit outcomes.
- Sep 13 Leaders adopted a 140‑point New Delhi Declaration covering security, trade, climate and technology issues.
- Sep 13 Day 2 of the summit focused on PM Modi’s four‑pillar BRICS agenda, early‑warning and disaster systems, AI, digital agriculture, supply chains and startups.
- Sep 13 President Xi outlined proposals for a BRICS AI Open Source Zone and a China‑hosted service‑trade forum.
- Sep 19 India unveiled a BRICS Logistics Supply Chain Cooperation Framework during the summit.
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