Washington, DC - 14 February 2024 - UN officials from the Secretary-General to leaders of UN missions around the world, to staff in some of the most isolated posts across the globe, often travel to Washington to discuss matters of common concern with officials at the Department of State, the National Security Council, the Defense Department, the US Agency for International Development, and other federal government agencies. They regularly engage with Members of Congress and their staff, and with a broad range of political, development and humanitarian organizations working to implement shared goals and shape approaches to some of the world¡¯s most complex problems. They meet with the media.

UN Secretary-General Ant¨®nio Guterres (2nd from right) meets with Senator Patty Murray (D-Washington), Senate Appropriations Committee Chair and Senate President pro tempore (far left), and Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine), Senate Appropriations Committee Vice-Chair (2nd from left). 26 April 2023. Photo: UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe
Representative Michael McCaul (R-Texas), Chairman, House Foreign Affairs Committee (left) speaking with UN Secretary-General Ant¨®nio Guterres (right) at the US Capitol. 26 April 2023. Photo: UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe
UN Secretary-General Ant¨®nio Guterres at the prestigious National Museum of African American History and Culture. 27 April 2023. Photo: UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe
Amina Mohammed, UN Deputy Secretary-General (left) and Ajay Banga, President of the World Bank Group. Photo: UNIC photo/Nathan Ochole
UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed (left) and US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry at ¡°Road to COP28¡± event, Rockefeller Foundation, Washington, DC, 12 April 2023. Photo: UNIC/Nathan Ochole
Ms. Amina Mohammed, UN Deputy Secretary-General (left) and Ms. Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the IMF. Photo: UNIC photo/Nathan Ochole
Photo: UNIC Washington ITU Secretary-General (left) with Sen. Todd Young (R-Indiana).
Melissa Fleming (left), UN Under-Secretary-General, Global Communications talks to Ohioans via Ideastream Public Media¡¯s ¡°The Sound of Ideas¡± program. Photo: UNIC Washington
Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo at ACUNS meeting in Washington, DC, 21 June 2023. Photo: UNIC Washington
Ambassador Michele Sison (right), Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs and Jean-Pierre Lacroix is the Under-Secretary-General for ²Ù±ÆÊÓƵapp Operations. Photo: State for International Organization Affairs
UN Assistant Secretary-General Selwin Hart and Florida International University students in Miami. 24 January 2023. Photo: UN Climate Action Team

In 2023, the United Nations Information Center in Washington, DC, advised on and organized the visits of more than 70 senior United Nations officials, with nearly 500 meetings with key interlocutors.

We had the privilege of welcoming Secretary-General Ant¨®nio Guterres, Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, 12 Under Secretaries-Generals, and many Special Representatives and Envoys of the Secretary-General and others.

Elizabeth Spehar, Assistant Secretary-General for ²Ù±ÆÊÓƵappbuilding Support (left), and Michael Heath, Deputy Assistant Secretary for West Africa and the Sahel (right), at US State Department. Photo: UNIC Washington

The topics ranged the full breadth of the UN¡¯s work: from peacekeeping missions and peace-building operations in conflict zones, to humanitarian, human rights and sustainable development work, to priority issues like climate change, artificial Intelligence and disinformation. These discussions provide essential opportunities for the UN and the US to work together, exchange information, and create synergies that boost critical work on shared priorities.  

Jean Todt, UN Secretary General's Special Envoy for Road Safety at The Washington Post. Photo: UNIC Washington

The Centre also plays a key role in furthering the partnerships between the UN and international financial institutions, including the World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund, maintaining ongoing consultations on issues of mutual interest.

Beyond high-level consultations with US officials, visiting UN officials also meet with a broad range of leaders from think tanks and other institutions, including the US Institute of ²Ù±ÆÊÓƵapp, which often host in-person and virtual gatherings that are open to the public. Other engagements include the representatives of embassies in Washington and academic institutions.

US Department of State Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary Gail Morgado, Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations (far left), US Department of State Deputy Assistant Secretary Brian Grimm, Bureau of International Organization Affairs (second from left), and Ulrika Richardson (far right), Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Resident Coordinator, Humanitarian Coordinator at State Department, Washington, DC, 19 May 2023. Photo: UNIC Washington

Washington-based media always appreciates hearing from UN officials about what the Organization is doing in the many and complex theaters it operates in.

The Centre also brings the UN beyond Washington, by organizing discussions on climate change and on disinformation among other topics at universities across the US.