Khalilur Rahman, Incoming President of the 81th session of the General Assembly - General Assembly Media Stakeout Media Stakeouts Date: 8 September 2026 Language: Floor (Original) Transcript: https://transcripts.un.org/ar/asset/k1s/k1slbk7xar?lang=floor Transcripts available through this tool are created by using automatic speech recognition and are not official records nor official documents of the United Nations. Official records and official documents are available on the Official Document System of the United Nations. --- GA · Spokesperson · Melissa Summers [0:00]: Colleagues, thank you for joining. We're a few minutes early, so please give us a moment just so everyone can arrive. I met you two weeks ago. My name is Melissa Summers. I am the spokesperson for his excellency, the now president of the General Assembly, Mr. Khalil Rahman. Thank you for joining us. Doctor Khalil has just officially taken the oath of office, as you know. And he has met with his with his predecessor, her excellency, Ms.. Annalena Baerbach, and accepted the traditional handover report from her presidency. We feel this is an opportune moment to hear directly from his excellency and to invite him to elaborate a bit on his vision for the 81st session. He first laid this out in June. I'm sure you've all followed. And it's also a wonderful moment to introduce you to Dr. Haman. He is an extremely seasoned statesman a long time here at the UN. And he shared with me personally his desire to have an open and very transparent relationship with all of you, the members of the media. So Doctor Rothman will make a few brief remarks, and then he will take 2 or 3 questions, given timing and time permitting. So without further ado, please allow me to introduce now president, Doctor Khalil Rahman, president of the General Assembly at its 81st session. And when we get to questions, we'll call on members and please introduce yourselves and the outlet from which you you come. So, Doctor Rahman, you have the floor. GA · PGA · Khalil Rahman [1:36]: Thank you, Melissa. Thank you so much. We are four minutes away from noontime, so I say good morning to all of you. I'm very happy to be before you as the newly sworn in president of the General Assembly 81st session. The first thing that I want to say very clearly to my friends of Unka, I'll work very closely with you. This is my style back home. I work openly with the media, and this will be no different. From time to time, I will come to you, we'll huddle together, I'll try to get your wisdom on matters. I want you to be a two way traffic, not just that you ask me a question and I respond. So that is something which I will pursue. So please make it easier on me. As I shared this thought with you in June after I was elected, that we have a heavy responsibility before us during this 81st session. The UN, multilateralism as a whole, It's been tested in ways we have never seen before. And I'm around for many, many years. I came to this place in 1985 as a delegate. And the following year, my foreign minister, I was president of the general assembly. So kind of a deja vu and kind of not, because the world has changed quite a bit in the intervening 40 years. And 40 years is a long time. Despite these challenges, we have opportunities that we hadn't before, and especially in the area of new technologies, where the UN is playing an important role when it comes to AI governance. And in doing all and in confronting the challenges and in harnessing the opportunities, I will put a high premium on cooperation and dialogue. I'm not naive to think that, okay, everything can be resolved quickly, amicably. There are things that will stay unresolved. There are things that we might take time to find solutions. That's fine. But that should not retard us from seeking common grounds wherever we can. And that is something I will continuously try to do. My presidency, as I said before, will be will lean heavily on the UN charter. I'll be completely faithful to this. as well as the mandates that the member states have given to United Nations. I believe that my job will be much easier if member states work together, in order that some of the critical issues that we see before us could, be resolved through dialogue rather than other ways. I also commend my predecessor for leading a difficult session in a very. productive manner. And I applaud the secretary general for his proposals and his efforts in carrying forward UN reforms, which will be, again, a continued process under. my presidency. One of the things that I hold very dear to me is the opening words of the charter, we the peoples of the United Nations. It doesn't say we the state, states of the United Nations. So the organization is larger than the member states that you see here. And that's where civil society, media, industry leaders, the the innovation innovation communities, academia, all of them are very important. And we have not been able to find a yet a way to integrate their voices into the UN. In my view, we are still treating them as the other. So unlocking the UN will be something that I will try to pursue during my presidency. As a candidate, I ran on on the theme, restoring trust, managing transformation. Now, as president, I add to this, we must make the United Nations fit for the future. This must be a place where countries can once again say and vote yes to UN. Le nu oui. With confidence and with enthusiasm. I thank you. Speaker 3 [6:54]: Is for all people. I wonder if this includes stateless groups like the Rohingya in your country and the Kurds in the Middle East, the world's largest ethnic group without a country. How would you make sure they are represented in this organization where they have no? seat. And my second question is about restoring trust. What would you do differently from your predecessors? Because every single one of them has had a slogan like yours and trust has kept falling in this. organization. GA · PGA · Khalil Rahman [7:22]: Thank you When the founders of the United Nations adopted the charter they said peoples of the United Nations They didn't say peoples of this country or that country of the United Nations It involves all people Last year you may have seen we organized an international conference on the Rohingyas I was designated by my government a couple of years ago as this as the high representative on Rohingya issues I've seen up close their distress their their yearning to go back home We took the secretary general to the camps 100,000 people gathered at fast break on a Ramadan evening and everybody said we want to go home okay So that's that's the urge of of a of a group of a large group of people kicked out of their own homes in Hearth and we got them to the United Nations We added their voice I will continue to do this as we proceed Thank you UNCA · UNCA · Journalist · Valeria Robeco [8:26]: Congratulations Thank you Mr President, thank you. On behalf of Anca, we welcome you and we're happy to see you for the first time here. It's Valeria Robeco from Anca Newswire. So my question is, you have been talking about common grounds. So with the upcoming eye level week, one concrete step or issue where you can you think you can find common ground between member states. Thank you. GA · PGA · Khalil Rahman [8:55]: Indeed. The most important thing would be that the people, people individuals who lead this world will be able to come and talk. Isn't it important? It's very important. So we invite them to speak in a manner that will point us to resolving issues through dialogue and through diplomacy. and to recommit themselves to development and well being and rights of people everywhere in the world. So we as the heads of states, heads of government, and other leaders speak, will sift through what they have said and put together what could be a common agenda. Thank you. Mr. TRT · Journalist · Frankie Siarta [9:41]: Mr. Mr. President. Hello? Yes. I have a question for him. Congratulations, Frankie Siarta from TRT World. And my question to you is, as you know, they've yet to elect the next secretary general, and I'd like to know whether or not you believe that the next secretary general should be a woman. Is that important to you? And what are the qualities you are looking for in the next secretary general? GA · PGA · Khalil Rahman [10:04]: Look, if I were to elect the or choose or appoint the secretary general, I'd told you exactly what I'm looking for. But this is a business that will be transacted by the member states. I'll be very faithful to charter. Charter says very clearly that the Security Council will recommend and the General Assembly will appoint. So I will work very closely with member states, with the presidents of the Security Council, so that we can come up with the name as soon as we can. We need to do this because we want the leadership of the organization to be seamless and the transition to be effective. Thank you. NTV · Journalist · Fadin Alam [10:47]: My name is Fadin Alam. I'm from Bangladesh. I'm working for NTV. So my question is, what the world and the Bangladesh can expect from your presidency? And obviously that is not done by previous president. GA · PGA · Khalil Rahman [11:03]: Thank you very much. First of all, I want to make sure that and this is what I said throughout my campaign that if elected, I'll be the president for every country. So irrespective of whether they voted me or not. And after the election, I said exactly the same thing. I will be a president for all countries. Thank you. PTI · Journalist · Koshita Singh [11:25]: Mr. President, a question for the US. Yes. On reform, Koshita Singh, the Press Trust of India. On Security Council reform, all eyes are on how that needle moves. We all know that nothing much has happened. What can we expect under your presidency? Any any extra push? And in your national capacity, will Bangladesh Prime Minister Tariq Rehman attend the BRICS Summit in New Delhi later this week? GA · PGA · Khalil Rahman [11:46]: Thank you. I'm not here as national capacity. So please just forgive me on the second question. okay. And I will really ask all of you to ask me questions or approach me in my capacity as the president of the general assembly. If there are bilateral issues, I'm still the foreign minister. I'll speak to you separately. Okay. On on reform, I'll continue to support the secretary general's UN 80 process. I believe I'm a long I'm an old timer in this place. I've seen this organization as a delegate. I've seen this as a as a as a staff member. So I've seen it from probably, I should say, 360 degrees. So the reforms must be meaningful. It these reforms must regain help regain the trust of this organization in the eyes of of the public. So unless that happens, reform will be regarded as marginal or barfunctory. I take this reform very, very seriously. We have a situation where trust is in deficit and the organization must undertake deeper reform in order to make it fit for future, not only today, but tomorrow. This is not 1945. We are not doing the San Francisco Conference. This is 81st century. So the world has moved on, the organization must move on, and I'll help that person. Thank you. Thank you. And one thing I'm telling you, my doors will be open, and please keep your doors open, if not windows open, and we'll always be in touch with each other. Thank you so much. GA · Spokesperson · Melissa Summers [13:26]: Thank you, Your Excellency. Thank you everyone and he'll take more questions shortly. Thank you so much.