President Áder’s bilateral talks during UN general assembly session focus on migration, water crisis

Migration, the future of the Amazon and food safety were among the issues discussed by President János Áder at bilateral talks held during the United Nations General Assembly session in New York.

Áder met Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Ecuadorian counterpart Lenin Moreno and Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) Director-General Qu Dongyu.

He told the press after the meetings late on Tuesday local time that he had discussed the issue of migration with the Egyptian president and they were in agreement that

Egypt had successfully fought against the efforts of human smugglers in recent years.

Áder said Egypt had prevented many human smuggler boats from transporting migrants to Europe.

The water crisis and the future of the Amazon were discussed with the president of Ecuador, he said. Moren said seven countries, including Brazil, had signed an agreement in early September to protect the Amazon basin. The agreement covers stopping illegal logging, preventing the opening of new mines and planting new forests, he said.

Áder said that at the meeting with the FAO director-general they discussed ways to supply quality food to a growing population despite the shrinking of arable land and drop in water reserves.

After the meetings, Áder and First Lady Anita Herczegh attended a reception by US President Donald Trump and his wife who invited delegation leaders and their spouses.

On Wednesday, Áder is scheduled to meet US scientists, hold a one-on-one meeting with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and address the summit on sustainable development goals at the UN.