Vice President Hussain Mohamed Latheef has wrapped up his official trip to New York, where he participated in the High-Level Week of the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly.

Throughout the visit, he participated in several UNGA activities and emphasized the Maldives’ focuses on equitable global governance, climate resilience, and protecting the independence and sovereignty of small island states.

In his address at the General Debate, the Vice President emphasized that each nation possesses the essential right to determine its own future. He also emphasized the changing security challenges confronting small states and connected these objectives to President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu’s vision for transforming the Maldives into a developed nation by 2040.

He restated the Maldives’ request for the creation of an independent Palestinian state founded on pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem serving as its capital. He further supported extensive UN reform, which includes a rotating Security Council position for Small Island Developing States.

In the high-level plenary meeting on sea-level rise, the Vice President emphasized the pressing danger presented by climate change. He stated that the Maldives' approach to increasing sea levels is resilience instead of retreat and called on the global community to offer scalable, grant-based support for adaptation.

To enhance international collaborations, the Vice President engaged in talks with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Bangladeshi Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. He also discussed the Global Development Initiative hosted by China.