“It is our consistent position that the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations form the cornerstone of current international relations and provide safeguards for world peace and stability,” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told the 68th General Assembly high-level debate.

Respecting national sovereignty and opposing interference in internal affairs, safeguarding peace and opposing aggression, and promoting equality and opposing power politics must be observed, he added.

Underscoring the country’s stance as the second biggest economy and a permanent, veto-carrying member of the Security Council, Mr. Wang stressed that China “will firmly fulfil its due international responsibilities and obligations.”

He also called for greater representation and voice of developing countries in the global governance system to make the international order “fairer and more equitable.”

Turning to the wider global scene, the Foreign Minister said that China plans to play a “more proactive and constructive role” in addressing international and regional hotspots.

In reference to the situation in Syria, Mr. Wang called for an immediate end to hostilities and violence to create necessary conditions for the verification and destruction of chemical weapons.

“China seeks no self gains in Syria and does not take side on the Syrian issue,” he stated, but said the Government is following with “great concern” the humanitarian situation in the country and its impact on the neighbouring States.

China has supported efforts of the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and the UN World Health Organization (WHO) in Syria, as well as Jordan and Lebanon.

The Foreign Minister also noted China’s diplomatic role in the Iranian nuclear issue, the Korean Peninsula, and the Middle East peace efforts.

Wang is among the leaders speaking at the annual General Assembly session at which heads of State and Government and other high-level officials present issues of individual national and international relevance. The General Debate continues through 1 October.

Adopted by a vote of 107 in favour to 12 against, with 59 abstentions, the Assembly text expressed the body’s outrage at the “rapidly increasing death toll” in Syria, which the UN estimates to be in the tens of thousands. The resolution also strongly condemns the Syrian Government’s increased use of heavy weapons, and also condemns ongoing “widespread and systematic gross violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms.”

This marks the fifth resolution on the situation in Syria voted by the 193-member body since 2011, when fighting broke out between the Government and opposition forces seeking to oust President Bashar Al-Assad. The current measure welcomes the establishment last year of the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces “as effective representative interlocutors needed for a political transition.”

The Arab-led resolution requests the international community to provide “urgent” financial support to host countries to enable them to respond to the growing humanitarian needs of Syrian refugees and affected communities. It also requests the UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons (IDPs) to submit a report to the Assembly within 90 days “on the very dire situation” of IDPs in the country.

“Over the past 800 days, the conflict has continued to escalate, threatening the establishment of ethnic or sectarian fiefdoms—thus gravely imperilling the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria,” said Assembly President Vuk Jeremic ahead of action on the text. “Violence is begetting more violence; hatred, more hatred —carving deeper and deeper wounds into Syria’s society.”

“If we are unable to do anything to stop this tragedy, then how can we sustain the moral credibility of this Organization?” he asked, adding: “It is high time to say ‘enough is enough;’ enough to complacency and enough to fratricide.” He said that evidence of chemical weapons use is now coming to light. “Succumbing to the despondency of the status quo “is a prescription for a disastrous future” of multiplying crises in Syria and the wider Middle East region.”

President Jeremic said that at least 80,000 have perished since the start of the hostilities, most of these casualties believed to be civilians, and that the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) has registered more than a million, now living in camps in Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq, and beyond. Over four million more people have been internally displaced since the fighting began.

“We should strive to build on the agreement reached by the Action Group for Syria last June in Geneva, and reinvigorated a few days ago in Moscow, to get the political process off the ground, enabling the citizens of Syria to begin reconciliation and freely determine their nation’s future, he said.

Also speaking before the vote, Syrian Ambassador Bashar Ja’Afari expressed his surprise that the resolution was tabled under the Assembly’s agenda item on “prevention of armed conflict” because he believed its content contradicted that purpose. Indeed, it sought to escalate violence by legitimizing the provision of weapons to terrorists in Syria and “by recognizing one faction of the opposition as the Syrian people’s legitimate representative. “

Whenever a political solution looked likely, he said, terrorist activity rose and Member States aborted their efforts to find a political solution. Al-Qaida-linked terrorists were operating in Syria thanks to the “involvement of intelligence agencies of well-known States” and they committed “unprecedented savage crimes” and human rights violations.

Syria had reacted positively to peace initiatives and he stressed his continued commitment to achieving a “Syrian-led comprehensive national dialogue” that would include the opposition. He called on opposition forces that rejected dialogue to adhere to the will of the “great majority of the Syrian people,” which favoured a political solution.

Nearly 30 other delegations took the floor, with some questioning “the motive behind the text – regime change – which has been clear from the start,” while others urged delegations to “look at the resolution honestly; look at the words on the page, which clearly call for a speedy political transition in Syria.”

Still other speakers saw the resolution as “counterproductive” in light of the understanding reached by US Secretary of State John Kerry, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow earlier this month to convene a an international meeting on a political transition in Syria. Those urging the Assembly to reject the text said the resolution bestowed authority on the National Coalition which could only be exercised by democratically elected officials.

In an announcement, Greek Foreign Ministry said: “Our decision is consistent with our country’s longstanding position of principle on the resolution of the Middle East problem based on two states: an independent and viable Palestinian state coexisting in peace and security with the state of Israel.

With the historic developments in the wider Middle East, Greece believes that the time has come for the Israelis and Palestinians to live – as is their inviolable right – in security in their states. The two-state solution, which is described in successive UN General Assembly Resolutions, and which is reaffirmed in the draft Resolution before us, is the only solution that ensures the long-term interests of the two peoples and peace and stability in the region.

As we have often underscored, the solution to the problem cannot but be the result of negotiations between the two parties, which are responsible for resolving – realistically and in accordance with international law – all the issues of the final status. Thus, we see as extremely positive the provision of the draft resolution for the immediate and unconditional return of the two parties to the negotiation table.

We express the hope that the two parties will take advantage of this new opportunity for peacemaking and avoid any action that might wreck the climate and undermine the direct negotiations.”

“As we draw closer to the deadline of the Millennium Development Goals in 2015, the international community needs to maximize its efforts towards achieving all the eight goals,” said Zambian President Michael Chilufya Sata, adding that his country is making steady progress in some of the goals.

The MDGs – which seek to slash a host of social ills, including extreme hunger and poverty, infant and maternal mortality, and lack of access to education and medical care – were agreed on by world leaders at a summit in 2000. They have a 2015 deadline for their completion.

President Sata said Zambia’s progress is visible in the education sector, with a significant increase in the net enrolment of children in primary schools, as well as in the reduction of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria cases.

However, he pointed that other challenges remain, among them the 60.5 per cent poverty rate in the country, despite efforts to stimulate economic growth. He also noted that unemployment continues to be one of the most pressing problems for Zambia’s youth, and said his Government is looking to increase partnerships with various UN agencies and the international community to harness best practices from across the world to address this issue.

The Zambian leader also reiterated his strong support for Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s High level Panel on the post-2015 development agenda. The panel, which held its first meeting yesterday, is tasked with providing recommendations on a global agenda following 2015.

“We must support this high-level panel to help recoup the lost opportunities of the recent past… We are still a long way from attaining the MDGs. Discarding them entirely would be to the detriment of the poorer nations,” President Sata said. “I trust that the Secretary-General’s panel will take this into consideration.”

In his remarks to the General Debate, the President of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama, said his country is on track to achieve the MDGs, particularly in the areas of reducing extreme poverty, achieving gender parity in school enrolment, giving access to drinking water and reducing the prevalence of HIV/AIDS.

He also pointed to unemployment among youth – who makes up nearly 65 percent of the population – as one of the biggest challenges for his country, and stressed that Ghana is dealing with this problem “aggressively and as effectively as possible by finding solutions that are long-term and sustainable.”

The Ghanaian President also spoke about his country’s upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections, and assured the international community that the polls will be free, fair and peaceful. He added that current political stability is not just being experienced in his country, but also in other parts of Africa, revealing a new phase for the continent.

“Right now, there is something spectacular happening in Africa. Growth is taking the place of stagnation; tranquility is taking the place of turmoil; democratic governance, founded on the rule of law, is taking the place of dictatorship,” he said.

He added, “This type of sustained growth, in combination with security and democracy can only ensure an Africa that will bear no economic resemblance to the ghost of its former self. This new Africa will stand on the world stage as a mutual partner.”

The two African leaders are among scores of heads of State and government and other high-level officials who are presenting their views and comments on issues of individual national and international relevance at the Assembly’s General Debate, which ends on 1 October.

“We need to redefine our priorities, invest in the real economy and agree on a new fairer world order,” President Sall said in his address to the General Debate of the Assembly’s 67th session, taking place at UN Headquarters in New York.

“We call for another vision of relations with Africa, a vision where it will not be about the treatment of Africa and the Africans, but dealing with Africa and the Africans in a concerted and more equitable partnership, taking into account the priorities and the interests of everyone,” he added.

President Sall emphasized that the African Continent, which had already endured centuries of slavery and exploitation, could not afford “to act again as Trojan horse and give over its resources in a competition that would push it further to the margins of progress and well-being.”

Echoing other leaders who had addressed the General Debate earlier on Tuesday, the Senegalese President called for greater representation by African nations in the Security Council, noting that the African continent counted the largest number of countries at the UN and that it was “a matter of justice and common sense.”

Turning to regional peace and security issues, President Sall urged the Security Council to adopt a greater roll in resolving the vacuum of power in northern Mali where, he said, “organized and heavily armed terrorist groups, living off all sorts of trafficking, have been occupying in complete illegality two thirds of the country, sowing despair among the population and destroying symbols of World Cultural Heritage.”

“Northern Mali has become a lawless area, used as a safe haven for recruitment and training by the international terrorist nebula,” President Sall warned, adding that the Security Council has “the obligation to act in order to bring an end to such a situation.”

Fighting between Government forces and Tuareg rebels broke out in northern Mali in January. The instability and insecurity resulting from the renewed clashes, as well as the proliferation of armed groups in the region, drought and political instability in the wake of a military coup d’état in March, have led over 250,000 Malians to flee to neighbouring countries, with 174,000 Malians estimated to be internally displaced.

President Sall also reiterated Senegal’s “firm rejection” of any partition of Mali and his condemnation of the March 2012 military coup which saw rebel Malian soldiers take control of the country and announce the dissolution of the Government led by then-President Amadou Toumani Toure.

Meanwhile, the Senegalese leader reserved praise for the work done by Guinea-Bissau’s Transitional Government as it works towards national reconciliation and the organization of credible elections following its unconstitutional change of government earlier this year. He noted, however, that the country deserved the continued support of the international community as it was also beset by “faithless and lawless foreign drug traffickers.”

Scores of the world’s heads of State and government and other high-level officials are expected to present their views and comment on issues of individual national and international relevance at the Assembly’s General Debate, which ends on 1 October.

“Regional and sub-regional organizations are important partners in solving conflicts in the affected areas throughout the world,” President Pohamba said in his address to the General Debate of the Assembly’s 67th session, taking place at UN Headquarters in New York. He said the unresolved conflicts around the world demand commitment and resolve from everyone to find durable solutions.

“There is thus, a compelling need for the United Nations to take into account the views of regional organizations in the areas of mediation and peacekeeping. These institutions should be fully supported in finding lasting solutions to violent conflicts around the world,” he stated.

President Pohamba pointed out that the African Union Peace and Security Council has, since its inception, cooperated with the UN Security Council toward the shared goal of conflict resolution.

Similarly, the Southern African Development Community sub-region has put initiatives in place to resolve political conflicts in the region through mediation.

“However, we are concerned about the deteriorating security situation in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo,” stated the President. “We, therefore, urge the international community to support the regional initiative aimed at resolving this conflict and to provide humanitarian assistance to displaced persons.”

He also highlighted the need for Sudan and South Sudan to peacefully resolve all outstanding issues stemming from the latter’s independence, and urged political actors in Madagascar, which experienced political upheaval last year, to carry out a roadmap leading to the holding of free, fair, inclusive and credible elections.

Denouncing the unconstitutional changes of government in Mali and Guinea-Bissau earlier this year, the Namibian leader commended the role played by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to help resolve the conflicts in these two countries. He also urged the international community to provide support and assistance to ECOWAS.

“Namibia firmly believes that, if we all dedicate ourselves to finding lasting solutions to conflicts by peaceful means, our collective efforts will be successful,” President Pohamba said.

In his address to the Assembly’s General Debate, Uganda’s Vice President, Edward Kiwanuka Ssekandi, also highlighted the role of regional and sub-regional bodies in resolving conflicts.

“In cases where national actors cannot resolve the problem, for some reason, then the sub-regional organizations should step in,” he said, adding that the UN and the international community would then provide the necessary support to the sub-regional and regional initiatives.

“The advantages of such an approach include utilizing actors that have more discerning knowledge of the problem, those that are in close proximity and with a greater stake in having the problem resolved, as well as the international support and legitimacy that the United Nations provides,” he noted.

Vice-President Ssekandi called on the Security Council and the international community to support the regional initiative by the International Conference of the Great Lakes Region aimed at addressing the root causes of the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the deployment of a neutral international force, and responding to the humanitarian crisis in the country.

“Our preference for homegrown solutions is premised on the realization that external influences or interventions do not necessarily offer sustainable solutions to resolve conflicts,” he noted. “On the contrary, external interventions often contribute to a cycle of destabilizing tendencies which is why we are still grappling with situations like the one in eastern DRC.”

An estimated 390,000 people have been internally displaced in eastern DRC and more than 60,000 Congolese have fled to neighbouring Rwanda and Uganda since fighting erupted in the eastern DRC in April between Government forces, supported by peacekeepers from the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO), and the M23 rebel group, made up of renegade former soldiers.

In addition to President Pohamba and Vice-President Ssekandi, scores of the world’s heads of State and government and other high-level officials are presenting their views and comments on issues of individual national and international relevance at the Assembly’s General Debate, which ends on 1 October.

“As for the Damascus leadership, they must know that the international community will not stand aside if they were to use chemical weapons,” President Hollande told the 67th UN General Assembly on the opening day of its General Debate, calling on the international community to protect liberated areas in Syria by providing humanitarian aid to refugees.

Citing Syria as a matter of immediate urgency, he put the number of dead there at nearly 30,000 since the uprising against the rule of the Assad family began 18 months ago. According to UN humanitarian agencies, more than 260,000 Syrians have fled to neighbouring countries and an estimated 2.5 million are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance.

In a review of world flashpoints, the French leader accused Iran of developing a nuclear programme without any final civilian purpose, warning that France will not accept such a diversion that threatens regional security. France, together with its European partners, is prepared to impose new sanctions, he said.

Iran’s nuclear activities have been of international concern since the discovery, in 2003, that Iran had concealed its nuclear activities for 18 years, in breach of its obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Iran has repeatedly stated that its nuclear programme is for the peaceful purpose of providing energy, but many countries contend it is seeking to develop nuclear weapons.

Turning to the Middle East, President Hollande stressed the need to resume negotiations in mutual trust leading to the establishment of two states, Israel and Palestine, describing it as “the only just and lasting solution.”

He also called on the international community to face up to the gravity of the situation in the Sahel region of west Africa, where terrorist groups have seized northern Mali, stressing that France will support the African Union and the Economic Community of West Africa in the measures they take to restore Mali’s territorial integrity.

Turning to development issues, the French President warned that the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDG) – which seek to slash a host of social ills, including extreme hunger and poverty, infant and maternal mortality, and lack of access to education and medical care, all by 2015 – will not be attained without additional resources. He called for innovative financing in light of the budgetary constraints afflicting many states.

He also urged the adoption of a financial transaction tax on the movement of capital to fund programs for development and the eradication of diseases such as HIV/AIDS and malaria, and called for the enlargement of the 15-member Security Council, including a permanent seat for Africa, to better reflect the current status of the world.

President Hollande met with Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday, and the two men discussed the world’s crisis points, touching on Syria, Iran, Afghanistan, the Middle East peace process and fighting in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

“The events of the last two weeks speak to the need for all of us to address honestly the tensions between the West and an Arab World moving to democracy,” he told scores of heads of State and Government attending the 67th General Assembly’s General Debate on its opening day, calling on world leaders to espouse the peaceful settlement of disputes.However, I do believe that it is the obligation of all leaders, in all countries, to speak out forcefully against violence and extremism.

Cities in North Africa and the Middle East recently experienced violent protests in response to an anti-Islamic video produced in the state of California by a US citizen. In the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi, the US ambassador to the country, Christopher Stevens, and three other diplomats were killed, and others injured or killed, when suspected Libyan religious extremists stormed the US Consulate there.

The film has drawn widespread condemnation around the world, including from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

“On this we must agree: there is no speech that justifies mindless violence,” President Obama said, calling the video “crude and disgusting,” but explaining how such hateful comment is allowed by the freedom of speech clause in the US constitution.

“There are no words that excuse the killing of innocents. There is no video that justifies an attack on an Embassy. There is no slander that provides an excuse for people to burn a restaurant in Lebanon, or destroy a school in Tunis, or cause death and destruction in Pakistan,” he added, referring to the attacks that killed Ambassador Stevens and caused deaths elsewhere.

“Burning an American flag will do nothing to educate a child. Smashing apart a restaurant will not fill an empty stomach. Attacking an Embassy won’t create a single job,” he noted.

President Obama said the US has supported the forces of change that have toppled dictators in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Yemen, and he called for an end to the regime of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria, where more than 18,000 people have been killed in an uprising against his rule over the past 18 months.

“However, I do believe that it is the obligation of all leaders, in all countries, to speak out forcefully against violence and extremism,” he declared, stressing that the recent violence or hateful speech by some individuals does not represent the views of the overwhelming majority of Muslims any more than the views of the video producers behind the anti-Islam film represent those of Americans.

“It is time to marginalize those who, even when not resorting to violence, use hatred of America, or the West, or Israel as a central principle of politics,” the US President said. “For that only gives cover, and sometimes makes excuses, for those who resort to violence.”

President Obama pledged that the US will never retreat from the world and will bring to justice those who harm its citizens and friends, while standing with its allies and partnering with countries to deepen ties of trade and investment, science and technology, energy and development.

“It is time to leave the call of violence and the politics of division behind. On so many issues, we face a choice between the promise of the future, or the prisons of the past,” he declared.

“The future must not belong to those who target Coptic Christians in Egypt – it must be claimed by those in Tahrir Square who chanted ‘Muslims, Christians, we are one.’ The future must not belong to those who bully women – it must be shaped by girls who go to school, and those who stand for a world where our daughters can live their dreams just like our sons…

“The future must not belong to those who slander the prophet of Islam. Yet to be credible, those who condemn that slander must also condemn the hate we see when the image of Jesus Christ is desecrated, churches are destroyed, or the Holocaust is denied. Let us condemn incitement against Sufi Muslims and Shiite pilgrims.”

Turning to specific crises, President Obama said the future for Israelis and Palestinians must not belong to those who turn their backs on the prospect of peace and thrive on conflict, and those who reject Israel’s right to exist, but to those who pursue the hard but clear goal of a secure, Jewish state of Israel and an independent, prosperous Palestine.

On Iran, he said the US wants to resolve nuclear issue through diplomacy and believes there is still time and space to do so.

“But that time is not unlimited,” he warned. “We respect the right of nations to access peaceful nuclear power, but one of the purposes of the United Nations is to see that we harness that power for peace. Make no mistake: a nuclear-armed Iran is not a challenge that can be contained.

“It would threaten the elimination of Israel, the security of Gulf nations, and the stability of the global economy. It risks triggering a nuclear-arms race in the region, and the unravelling of the non-proliferation treaty. That is why a coalition of countries is holding the Iranian government accountable. And that is why the United States will do what we must to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.”

Scores of the world’s heads of State and government and other high-level officials are expected to present their views and comment on issues of individual national and international relevance at the Assembly’s General Debate, which ends on 1 October.

The US President also met with Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today. In their meeting, the two men discussed the importance of combating hate speech and incitement to violence while protecting free speech, and agreed on the importance of the UN’s work to promote tolerance.

Other topics they discussed included the situation in Syria and its impact on the region, the needs of the Palestinian people and the growing challenges in West Africa’s Sahel region, in addition to the global challenges on food and nutrition, women’s and children’s health, and education, and the need for UN reform.

Abbas will address the U.N. General Assembly on Sept. 27, and then file the application for observer state recognition with the world body, said Malki, according to Reuters.

“The application will be deposited and then we will be in touch with the members of the General Assembly, consulting with them on the proper timing for applying,” the minister added.

The Palestinians are currently a UN observer “entity” with no voting rights. Malki told reporters that Mahmoud Abbas will ask for non-member observer status at the U.N General Assembly in his speech in late September, an upgrade they hope will firmly establish the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem, captured by Israel in 1967, as Palestinian territories.

Separately, Ron Prosor,Israel’s UN envoy, told local radio stations that Palestinian Authority will likely receive non-member observer status, but says: ‘Nothing will change on the ground’.

The Palestinian bid to upgrade their status at the United Nations would find majority support but would not bring them closer to statehood and peace with Israel, he added.

A simple majority vote in the 193-member General Assembly would be enough to grant Palestinians non-member observer status, bypassing the Security Council  where the United States, Israel’s ally, has previously threatened to veto the bid.

The United States and Israel argue that a Palestinian state can only be established in negotiations with Israel. However, Israeli-Palestinian have been stalled since 2008. A Palestinian bid last year for full U.N. membership lost ground in the U.N. Security Council because of lack of support.

The resolution, presented by the Arab Group, was adopted by a vote of 133 in favour to 12 against with 31 abstentions, and comes two weeks after the Security Council failed to agree on collective action to help stop the bloodshed.

It condemns “the increasing use by the Syrian authorities of heavy weapons, including indiscriminate shelling from tanks and helicopters, in population centres and the failure to withdraw its troops and the heavy weapons to their barracks…”

The 193-member body also condemned all violence, “irrespective of where it comes from,” and demanded that all parties implement the relevant Security Council resolutions to achieve a cessation of armed violence in all its forms by all parties.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon once again voiced his regret over the divisions that have paralyzed action in the Security Council, adding that the immediate interests of the Syrian people must be paramount over any larger rivalries of influence.

“The conflict in Syria is a test of everything this Organization stands for,” he told the meeting. “I do not want today’s United Nations to fail that test.”

He warned that, despite repeated verbal acceptances of the six-point plan presented by the Joint Special Envoy for the UN and the League of Arab States for the Syrian Crisis, Kofi Annan, both the Government and the opposition continue to rely on weapons, not diplomacy, in the belief that they will win through violence.

In addition, the city of Aleppo is currently the epicentre of a “vicious” battle between the Syrian Government and those who wish to replace it, said the Secretary-General. “But there are no winners in Aleppo today, nor anywhere else in the country. The losers in this escalating battle are the people of Syria.”

Mr. Ban stressed that united international pressure can make a difference. “All of us have a responsibility to the people of Syria. We must use all of the peaceful means in the UN Charter to help them unite around a Syrian-led transition process that is based on dialogue and compromise, not bullets and arrests.”

He added that the primary responsibility for stopping the violence rests with those on the ground, particularly the Government. “But their refusal to lay down arms does not absolve the rest of us of the need to act. I urge all members of this Assembly to face up to the collective responsibilities we shoulder.”

Yesterday Mr. Annan announced that he will not continue on as the Joint Special Envoy past the end of August. The Secretary-General said that while a successor is being sought to replace Mr. Annan, mediation can only succeed where there is a commitment to solving conflict through dialogue and real leverage to back it up.

The UN estimates that more than 10,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in Syria and tens of thousands displaced since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began some 16 months ago.