General Assembly: 83rd Plenary meeting, 78th session

The General Assembly convened to pay tribute to Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi, the late President of Iran, and his entourage, all of whom perished in a tragic helicopter accident on 19 May. Following the observing of a minute of silence in their memory, Dennis Francis (Trinidad and Tobago), President of the General Assembly, offered “our deepest condolences to the Government and people of Iran”, recalling that President Raisi “led his country’s contribution to shape the tenets of our multilateral system and international cooperation”. Just 10 months before his demise, President Raisi addressed the General Debate of the seventy-eighth session in September — clearly articulating his country’s priorities. The General Assembly President also honoured the memory of Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian — “a consummate diplomat who faithfully stood alongside President Raisi in representing Iran on the global stage”. Recalling a bilateral meeting with the Foreign Minister on 21 September 2023, he expressed his great appreciation for his diplomatic acumen. Encouraging “the Iranian people to gather courage and come to terms with their profound loss”, he voiced confidence that “their resilience will guide them to demonstrate remarkable strength in this difficult time of mourning”. Also extending his condolences to the families, the Government and people of Iran, António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, observed that President Raisi “led Iran at a challenging time for the country, the region and globally”. He recalled that just hours before his death, President Raisi met with his Azerbaijani counterpart to inaugurate the Qiz Qalasi dam, the largest joint water project between the two countries.