Shehbaz in New York for UN General Assembly

LONDON/NEW YORK/ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday reached New York from London to attend the UN General Assembly — an annual event held this year at time when tensions are rising in the volatile Middle East while the Trump tariffs have produced a global trade war with each nation trying secure its economic interests at every cost.

Read more: Shehbaz for regional cooperation, warns of ‘forces of instability’

Shehbaz is set to represent a Pakistan at the global stage, which in 2025 has so far witnessed two events that will shape regional and global politics in the decades to come: a four-day war with India — shattering the myth of Indian hegemony — and the signing of Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement (SMDA) with Saudi Arabia.

The prominence Pakistan has attracted since May 10 means the prime minister is no more heading a delegation of terrorism-hit country dealing with a plethora of economic challenges. He is the leader of nation that can rightly claim the stature of a “net security provider”.

Meanwhile, the visit also coincides with an international summit co-hosted by France and Saudi Arabia on Monday to push the idea of two-state solution, first formalised under the Oslo Accords but forgotten since then due to the far-right Prime Minister Netanyahu and his Greater Israel plan.

Read more: World summit on two-state solution amid Israel, US boycott

ISOLATION IN A GLOBALISED WORLD

The world is changing and changing fast for the worst, as the West, till recently regarded as the driving force behind integration now has a leader — the United States — that is bulldozing the very idea of globalisation.

On Monday, the White House said US President Donald Trump will hit out at “globalist institutions” in a speech on Tuesday to the UN General Assembly.

Trump will “touch upon how globalist institutions have significantly decayed the world order, and he will articulate his straightforward and constructive vision for the world,” Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told a briefing.

And simultaneously, the world now sees China as the champion of multilateralism — a scenario which an overwhelming majority of pundits failed to project.

Read more: SCO summit: Guterres says China’s support for multilateralism vital

UNCERTAINTY IS THE RULE

Since the start of the current year, the world also saw two other important developments: Israel’s aggression against Iran and the US-China trade war turning global thanks to the Trump tariffs.

But this trade war has hit India — Pakistan’ eastern hostile neighbour badly after Trump decided to impose 50 per cent tariffs on New Delhi, which questions the very idea of Prime Minister Narendra Modi boosting his country’s status of world power.

And the much-touted Trump Modi bromance is nowhere to be seen as the US has now decided to hike the H-1B visa fee to $100,000, a move that hits India worst.

SCHEDULE AND OBJECTIVES

During his stay in New York, Shehbaz will hold meetings with world leaders, including an interaction with Trump.

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Curtain Raiser: Visit of the Prime Minister to New York to Attend the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly 22-26 September, 2025 https://t.co/p487uUBro7 pic.twitter.com/uuihQCwlQR

— Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Pakistan (@ForeignOfficePk) September 21, 2025

In his address to the UN Assembly and interactions heads of state and governments, the prime minister will focus on the crisis in Gaza and the suffering of the Palestinians as well as “Pakistan’s perspective on the regional security situation”, climate change, terrorism, Islamophobia, and sustainable development.

Read more: Dar for consensus, cooperation to resolve disputes