UN General Assembly

Sarkozy to address UN

Article published on the 2008-09-23 Latest update 2008-09-23 11:07 TU

The 63rd session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
(Photo : Reuters)

French President Nicolas Sarkozy will address the UN General Assembly on its first day Tuesday, and is expected to use the forum to promote the “moralisation of financial capitalism”, an idea he has been pushing since before taking office, as the world financial crisis deepens.

As the 63^rd session of the UN General Assembly gets under way, international tensions are expected to be on display for the world to see. The spiraling financial crisis, government bail-outs, and lingering animosity from this summer’s Georgia-Russia conflict are likely to be important themes as world leaders take turns to address each other.

Sarkozy has spoken repeatedly about an economic and ecological "New Deal", saying Monday at a UN meeting on African development, that it would “serve development rather than speculation.”

At the meeting, African leaders voiced their fears that massive bailouts for financial institutions would distract from badly-needed African development aid. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said that no African nation was on track to meet the Millenium Development Objectives to cut poverty rates in half by 2015.

In order to get the countries on track, Ban called for 48.7 billion euros per year – or one tenth of the American bailout package.

Later on Monday, Sarkozy called for those responsible for the current global financial “disaster” to be punished.

"Today millions of people around the world are fearful of losing their nest eggs, their apartments, their savings in banks," Sarkozy said at a dinner where he was awarded a Humanitarian Award by the Elie Wiesel Foundation.

"We must provide them with clear answers. Who is responsible for this disaster? That those responsible be held accountable and punished and that we government leaders assume our responsibilities!" he said without specifying whom he saw as responsible.

Sarkozy will follow Ban’s opening speech, and US President George W. Bush’s address. He will be followed by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad.