It is necessary to end the conflict in the Middle East, says Biden before the UN

New York. President Joe Biden declared this Tuesday, in his final speech before the UN General Assembly, that the United States must not isolate itself from the world, as Israel and Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon approach an all-out war and Israel’s bloody operation against Hamas in Gaza is about to turn one year old.

Biden used his wide-ranging speech to talk about the need to end the conflict in the Middle East and the civil war in Sudan, which has already lasted 17 months, in addition to highlighting the support for kyiv by the United States and its Western allies since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. He also expressed concern about artificial intelligence and its potential to be used for repression.

His appearance before the international body offered Biden one of his last high-profile opportunities as president to speak in favor of strong support for Ukraine, which could be in doubt if former President Donald Trump defeats Vice President Kamala Harris in November. . Biden insisted that, despite global conflicts, he still has hope for the future.

“I have seen a remarkable piece of history,” Biden said. “I know many people look at the world now and see hardship and react with despair, but not me.”

“We are stronger than we think” when the world acts together, he added.

Biden came to the presidency promising to rejuvenate U.S. relations around the world and withdraw his country from “forever wars” in Afghanistan and Iraq that consumed American foreign policy for the past 20 years.

“I was determined to finish it, and I did,” Biden said, referring to leaving Afghanistan, calling it a “difficult but right decision.” He acknowledged that it was “accompanied by tragedy” with the death of 13 American soldiers and hundreds of Afghans in a suicide attack that occurred during the chaotic withdrawal.

But his foreign policy legacy could ultimately be determined by his government’s response to two of the biggest conflicts in Europe and the Middle East since World War II.