HIGHLIGHTS OF PRESS BRIEFING BY BRENDEN VARMA, SPOKESPERSON FOR GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT MIROSLAV LAJČÁK

PRESIDENT’S YOUTH DIALOGUE TO BE HELD TOMORROW

• The President’s Youth Dialoguewill take place on Wednesday 30 May. This will be one of his big events for the year. The programme can be found here.
• In an op-ed released ahead of the event, he said that, with more young people on the planet than ever before, they need to be included in global conversations about issues that affect us all.
• Meanwhile, at a side event held today, entitled “Young Peacemakers for Sustaining Peace,” the President said, “Young people are here for peace – not war. We failed to understand this simple truth, for too long. We focused on the youth mobs… young extremists… young rebels. But, they are not representative. Actually, the overwhelming majority of young people are out there, working for peace.”
• Tomorrow’s Youth Dialogue will focus on three key areas: education, employment and prevention of radicalization.
• The opening segment in the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Chamber will feature remarks by the President, as well as speakers and performers including: Pita Taufatofua, the athlete from Tonga who made a memorable entrance at the opening ceremonies in both the Winter and Summer Olympics; singer-songwriter and X Factor alum Emmanuel Kelly, who was found as a baby in a box in a park in Iraq and is now a social media star who has performed with Coldplay; and Mari Malek, a South Sudanese refugee turned supermodel. Additional speakers will include the Secretary General’s Envoy on Youth and the CEO of the Qatar Foundation.
• There will also be two chats and an open mic session, in which young people can take the stage to voice their concerns, as well as a Youth Media Zone in the United Nations Correspondents Association (UNCA) Room.
• In the evening, the President will be hosting a reception for the young participants, which will be deejayed by Alexandra Richards, the daughter of Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards.
• Today, the Spokesperson invited Tongan Olympian Pita Taufatofua to give a press briefing on his participation in the President’s Youth Dialogue.

PRESIDENT MEETS WITH FOREIGN MINISTERS OF AZERBAIJAN AND UKRAINE

• The President met today with the Foreign Minister of Ukraine They discussed regional developments and multilateralism.
• The President also met with Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister. They spoke about regional developments, the role of regional organizations, preventive diplomacy and mediation.