Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will focus on the ongoing crisis in Haiti as he speaks with some world leaders on Monday on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly session.
Mr. Trudeau will meet with Haiti’s interim Prime Minister, Garry Conille, before delivering a speech at the High-Level Meeting of the Ad Hoc Advisory Group on Haiti of the United Nations Economic and Social Council.
Mr Conille took office earlier this year after former Prime Minister Ariel Henry was forced out by the rise of criminal gangs, which had overrun much of Haiti’s capital.
Later Monday, Trudeau will take part in a conversation that is expected to be quite different when he appears as a guest on CBS’s late-night show “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.”
Mr. Trudeau arrived in New York on Sunday. He delivered a speech at the Future Summit, telling leaders they had a choice: bury their heads in the sand or come together to tackle global challenges.
The summit aims to reform the UN, reinvigorate multilateralism and find solutions to new challenges at a time when the global body is under fire for its handling of issues such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the war in Gaza.
Mr. Trudeau called on leaders to adopt the “Compact for the Future,” a 42-page plan aimed at addressing a broad range of global challenges of the 21st century.e century. It was approved by the UN General Assembly at the opening of the two-day summit.
Gang violence and political upheaval in Haiti will be at the forefront of Trudeau’s minds Monday morning. The prime minister is expected to reinforce Canada’s longstanding support for Haitian-led solutions to turn the tide in the country.
Canada is closely involved in Haiti’s response to humanitarian, security and political crises. According to a UN report released in June, increasing gang activity has displaced nearly 580,000 people in Haiti since March.
On Monday, Trudeau will also meet with Nobel Peace Prize laureate and co-founder of the Malala Fund Malala Yousafzai before attending a working lunch hosted by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly will join Trudeau in New York and deliver Canada’s national statement to the General Assembly. Her speech will focus on “Canada’s commitment to promoting multilateral cooperation, human rights, democracy and the rule of law,” her office said.
With information from the Associated Press