Prime Minister Mark Carney will attend the UN General Assembly in New York next week but will not deliver a speech, while taking part in meetings and multilateral events on issues including the two-state solution and ocean data.
The Story
Prime Minister Mark Carney is scheduled to attend the United Nations General Assembly next week, with the trip taking place as geopolitical instability, war, and U.S. President Donald Trump’s efforts to dismantle parts of the multilateral order are described as hanging over the event.
According to government officials, Carney will not give a speech during the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly while he is in New York City from Monday to Wednesday. The material provided does not list any specific time or day for meetings during that window.
Instead, Carney is expected to meet with world and business leaders and take part in UN events. In a news release included in the report, Carney said “the world is looking at Canada differently,” and argued that Canada intends to help shape the international order as it is being “remade.”
Carney’s remarks also tied the trip to a practical agenda focused on multilateral engagement. He said the country will “defend the rules that protect our sovereignty” and aim to turn cooperation into opportunities for Canadian workers and businesses at the General Assembly.
A government official said Carney will co-host an event on the two-state solution with France and the United Kingdom. The event is planned for one year after the three countries recognized an independent Palestinian state at the General Assembly, and it is described as an opportunity to continue showing support while reviewing implementation and progress on key priorities.
The report places that event against a wider policy backdrop. Earlier this month, Canada joined European nations in a pledge to ban imports of goods produced in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, with the report noting that the countries accused Israel of enabling settler violence and expanding settlements widely understood to be illegal under international law.
During the General Assembly, Carney will also take part in an OceanEye International Alliance event focused on securing sustained investment and opening ocean data. The report says he will participate alongside European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Carney is further scheduled to take part in a roundtable on strengthening multilateral collaboration with European Council President António Costa and Kenya’s President William Ruto. The report links these discussions to the UN’s ongoing efforts at “reformation,” while noting that Trump’s administration has demanded changes and held back funding, putting the institution in turmoil.
Beyond the specific events Carney will attend, the report outlines several tensions surrounding the UN system. It says the Trump administration has withdrawn from multiple UN organizations, including the World Health Organization and UNESCO, and that the UN is also in the process of selecting its next secretary-general.
For Canadians, the practical significance of the trip is that it places the prime minister in a high-profile arena at a time when Canada’s approach to multilateralism is being contrasted with U.S. retrenchment. The report also notes that Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand is set to deliver a speech during the General Assembly, and that while Carney and Trump could run into each other, no meetings currently scheduled with U.S. administration members are listed in the provided material.
← More stories