US to Focus on Ending War When World Leaders Gather at UN

A handout still image taken from handout video provided on 17 September 2024 by the Russian Defense Ministry shows a Russian BM-21 Grad, a self-propelled 122 mm multiple rocket launcher, firing towards Ukrainian positions at an undisclosed location in Russia. EPA/Russian Defense Ministry Press Service/Handout
A handout still image taken from handout video provided on 17 September 2024 by the Russian Defense Ministry shows a Russian BM-21 Grad, a self-propelled 122 mm multiple rocket launcher, firing towards Ukrainian positions at an undisclosed location in Russia. EPA/Russian Defense Ministry Press Service/Handout
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US to Focus on Ending War When World Leaders Gather at UN

A handout still image taken from handout video provided on 17 September 2024 by the Russian Defense Ministry shows a Russian BM-21 Grad, a self-propelled 122 mm multiple rocket launcher, firing towards Ukrainian positions at an undisclosed location in Russia. EPA/Russian Defense Ministry Press Service/Handout
A handout still image taken from handout video provided on 17 September 2024 by the Russian Defense Ministry shows a Russian BM-21 Grad, a self-propelled 122 mm multiple rocket launcher, firing towards Ukrainian positions at an undisclosed location in Russia. EPA/Russian Defense Ministry Press Service/Handout

The US focus at next week's annual UN gathering of world leaders will include ending the scourge of war and revitalizing an overstretched aid system, US envoy Linda Thomas-Greenfield said on Tuesday.

She specifically mentioned Russia's war in Ukraine, the conflict in Sudan, instability in Haiti, the war between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas in the Gaza Strip and violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Myanmar.

"As we work to silence the guns, we must also redouble our efforts to address humanitarian crises," Thomas-Greenfield told reporters ahead of the high-level meeting of the UN General Assembly.

"Aid workers put their own lives at risk to save the lives of others. But what we hear time and time again is that humanitarians don't have the resources, they don't have the protection, they don't have the access they need to do their jobs," she said.

More than 130 heads of state or government are due to travel to New York to address the 193-member General Assembly, a week after a second assassination attempt on US presidential candidate Donald Trump.

"The situation that happened with President Trump is unacceptable," Thomas-Greenfield said. "We have a responsibility to do everything possible to protect the heads of state who are coming here, but also protect their own political leaders."

"New York City has police everywhere, diplomatic security is supporting Secret Service to also provide security for all the heads of state who will be here," she said, adding that there had never been a security incident related to a head of state at the UN.



Von der Leyen Names European Commission's New Top Team

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen holds a press conference on the suggested structure and portfolios of the college of European Commissioners in Strasbourg, France September 17, 2024. REUTERS/Johanna Geron
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen holds a press conference on the suggested structure and portfolios of the college of European Commissioners in Strasbourg, France September 17, 2024. REUTERS/Johanna Geron
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Von der Leyen Names European Commission's New Top Team

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen holds a press conference on the suggested structure and portfolios of the college of European Commissioners in Strasbourg, France September 17, 2024. REUTERS/Johanna Geron
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen holds a press conference on the suggested structure and portfolios of the college of European Commissioners in Strasbourg, France September 17, 2024. REUTERS/Johanna Geron

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday named Spain's ecological transition minister Teresa Ribera as the bloc's next antitrust commissioner while Estonia's Kaja Kallas will be in charge of foreign policy.
Lithuania's Andrius Kubilius will become the EU's first defense commissioner - a new role designed to build up European military manufacturing capacity in the face of Russian aggression in Europe's eastern flank.
Other names on the list of EU Commissioners include French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne in charge of industrial strategy, while Slovakia's Maros Sefcovic will oversee trade policies, Reuters reported.
The Commission is the 27-country European Union's most powerful institution. It has the power to propose new EU laws, block mergers between companies and sign free trade deals.
Each EU member state will have one seat at the Commission's table, a role comparable to a government minister, although its political weight varies greatly depending on the portfolio.
All candidates will undergo hearings with lawmakers in the European Parliament who have to sign off on their nomination.
Ribera will need to fill the footsteps of Denmark's long-serving antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager, who in recent years stepped up the pressure on Big Tech to allow fair competition on its platforms.
She will also oversee the EU's stance on foreign subsidies, another hot-button issue as companies in key sectors like electric vehicles and energy production are struggling to defend their business models against cheap competition from abroad, particularly from China.
All commissioners will report to German conservative von der Leyen, who this summer was handed a second term as EU chief executive by member states after her political camp won the most votes in EU elections.
The next EU Commission is expected to take office by the end of the year, meaning one of its first tasks will be fielding the outcome of the US presidential election in November.
A second Trump presidency could sharply alter Western unity on supporting Ukraine against Russia's invasion and up-end EU trade relations with the world's biggest economy.
There was some drama on Monday on the next Commission's line-up, when France picked Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne as its new candidate after the incumbent, Thierry Breton, abruptly quit with tough words for von der Leyen.