PM Briceño Addresses 76th Session of UN General Assembly

John Briceño

At the start of news tonight, Prime Minister John Briceño addressed the Seventy-Sixth Session of the United Nations General Assembly.  The annual, high-level meeting of the heads of government across all member countries is taking place in New York City, where PM Briceño and a delegation of government officials arrived on Wednesday.  Ahead of Belize’s presentation at the UNGA, Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei also addressed the assembly where he spoke briefly about the age-old territorial dispute between both countries.  During his address, PM Briceño spoke in both English and Spanish. He announced the plan to swab Belize’s debt for blue bonds and spoke out against the rollout of COVID-19 booster shots in developed countries when there are other nations that cannot access vaccines. Here’s an extract from Prime Minister Briceño’s address moments ago.

Prime Minister John Briceño

“Whether it is the health or climate crisis, the scale of the challenge, the magnitude of the impact, and the urgency of the action required, cannot be met by any one country alone. Inequality and vulnerabilities are also a threat to the rich and strong. Therefore, our common future depends squarely on our solidarity, international cooperation, and strong and effective multilateral system. We must commit to find solutions together to the common problems that we confront. Unbridled unilateralism must yield to the settled determination to respond to the major problems of our times with social justice. My country is pursuing along with Guatemala, the final and peaceful resolution of Guatemala’s claim to Belizean territory at the International Court of Justice. In the meantime, the 2005 agreement on confidence building measures remain in effect and our bilateral relations continue to be based on mutual good will. We count on Guatemala to remain a constructive partner and rely on the international community to support us in addressing the daily challenges along the border that are inevitable between neighbors. If the multilateral system is to be our collective lifeline, it must be repurposed.”