Food security, climate and the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) all featured prominently in Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry’s address to the UN General Assembly last night. Highlights from the 20-minute speech (watch, runtime: 18:20) in New York include:

#1 Food security- The food crisis reflects the international community’s failure to achieve its sustainable development goals, Shoukry said, calling for a strategy that tackles the root causes of food insecurity. “We need to develop sustainable farming and food systems and meet the urgent needs of food importing developing countries,” he said, adding that Egypt is ready to cooperate with the international community to build a global hub to store, supply and trade grains.

#2 Climate change- Shoukry called on advanced economies to provide more aid to developing nations to help them fight climate change.

#3 Debt relief- Shoukry urged creditor nations to get serious on providing debt relief to developing economies, many of which are threatened with debt crises on the back of the pandemic and the spillover effects from the war in Ukraine.

#4 GERD- The minister again spoke of the need for Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan to find a way out of the GERD crisis, and called on the UN and UN Security Council to put pressure on Ethiopia for unilaterally filling the dam’s reservoir, which he said contravened international law.

Also from the UN General Assembly:

• “So world, show me the beef” was Shoukry’s message in New York on climate finance, as he called for wealthy countries to step up and allocate both loans and so-called “loss and damage” funds for developing nations, who contribute the least to climate change but are facing the worst of its effects, according to the New York Times.
• Talks with Lavrov: Shoukry called for a diplomatic resolution to the Ukraine crisis in a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Reaching a political settlement with Ukraine is especially important “in light of the negative repercussions on the global economy,” Shoukry told Lavrov, stressing the impact of concurrent food and energy crises on developing countries including Egypt.
• A renewed push on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? Shoukry attended a meeting to discuss reviving the two-state solution with counterparts from Jordan, the UK and France, as well as UN and EU representatives. The meetings came as Israel’s new PM Yair Lapid declared support for a two-state solution during his address, becoming the first Israeli leader to do so in recent years.
• Talks with UK, Irish FMs: Shoukry also discussed upping investment to Egypt with the British and Irish foreign ministers.
• Shoukry holds talks with US, regional allies: US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken stressed the US’ commitment to regional security and economic prosperity during talks with officials from Egypt, the GCC, Iraq, Jordan and Yemen on Friday, the State Department said.

MEANWHILE- El Sisi meets Al Burhan: President Abdel Fattah El Sisi held talks with Sudan’s military leader, Gen. Abdel Fattah Al Burhan, in Cairo yesterday, Ittihadiya said in a statement. The two discussed trade as well as military and economic cooperation, the statement.