70th UN General Assembly Kicks Off in New York

The 70th United Nations General Assembly opened Monday, with Secretary General Ban Ki-moon opening the proceedings with a video to show "Why the United Nations is the indispensable home and hope of all human kind.”

“What counts now is translating promises made on paper into change on the ground,” said Ban in his opening speech to the assembly, which will continue until Oct. 3. He praised the goals highlighted in the weekend’s Sustainable Development Summit, which pledged “An end to extreme poverty by 2030.”

RELATED: Read live updates here or watch teleSUR’s live feed of the General Assembly here and video clips of various presidents’ speeches at the Development Summit here

Ban talked about the challenges facing the world today, mentioning the war in Syria, humanitarian crises in Iraq and Europe, the threat of the Islamic State group, climate change and sustainable development, and threats to democracies.

“We should not be building walls, rather looking at the root causes in the countries of origin.”

“The global humanitarian system is not broken (but) we are not receiving enough money to meet our needs,” Ban said. “People need emergency assistance, but what they want more is lasting solutions. They may appreciate tents, but what they deserve is to go home.”

International law, human rights and basic compassion should guide our response to humanitarian problems, Ban said.

Ban urged Europe to do more for the refugees seeking help from one of the world’s richest economic areas, reminding his audience that Europeans themselves were refugees needing help after the Second World War. “We should not be building walls, rather looking at the root causes in the countries of origin.”

RELATED: Europe’s Refugee Crisis

He spoke of Syria, saying the warring parties are “turning their countries to ruins,” fueled by “regional powers.”

The crisis in Yemen should be resolved through dialogue, Ban said: “Let me be clear, there is no military solution in this country.”

Israelis and Palestinians must re-engage, Ban urged.

He also said women must be empowered to help in all of these world problems: “We must unlock the potential of women to protect peace.”

On climate change, Ban said, “There is wind in the sails of climate action.” Ahead of Paris talks later in the year, the world must “either raise ambition or risk raising temperatures,” he continued. “Let us have a will to do things differently.”

“We live in paradoxical and transformational times.”

After Ban spoke Mogens Lykketoft, the president of the 70th session of the General Assembly reiterated many of the points Ban made about the challenges faced by the world, highlighting the urgency of many of these issues, compared to previous generations, due to the global population boom.

Governments must be acknowledge private sector involvement, Lykketoft said, noting that we live in “paradoxical and transformational times.” He pointed to the juxtaposition of more people than ever living in peace and prosperity, but ongoing wars prompting the greatest refugee movement since World War II.

In Monday’s morning session, Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff, U.S. President Barack Obama, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and French President Francois Hollande will be among those addressing the General Assembly.