FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Yonkers Congressman Eliot Engel, the Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, addressed students from all over the country at the 2019 Global Engagement Summit held at the United Nations in New York City

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Representative Eliot L. Engel addressing The Global Engagement Summit on Friday, February 22, 2019. It is the largest annual gathering of UN supporters in the U.S., Congressman. Engel delivered the keynote address in the General Assembly Hall at UN headquarters in New York City.

PRESS RELEASE: The Global Engagement Summit is the largest annual gathering of UN supporters in the U.S., bringing together over 1,500 college students and other UNA-USA (United Nations Association of the United States) leaders to explore the vital mission and work of the UN. Eliot Engel delivered the keynote address in the General Assembly Hall at UN headquarters.

QUOTE: “I’m so happy to stand here before a future generation of public servants and thinkers—the people who will claim the mantle of leadership and carry on the work of building a safer, more prosperous world,” Eliot Engel said in his remarks. “I’m grateful for your commitment.”

Eliot Engel’s speech addressed the role the United States and UN play in addressing global challenges, with a particular focus on ending the crisis in Yemen.

“Even as the most powerful country in the world, we can accomplish a great deal more when we partner with other countries rather than go it alone,” Eliot Engel said. “By working together through the United Nations, the UN becomes a critical instrument in addressing some of our global challenges.

“If you’ve been tracking Congress’s work the last few weeks, you know the House just passed legislation that would dial back America’s involvement in the war in Yemen. This war is such a heartbreaking catastrophe. Every month, the UN’s World Food Program feeds more than 7.9 million Yemenis,” Eliot Engel said

“UNICEF is helping children cope with the unimaginable horrors of living in the midst of conflict. And UNHCR continues to build shelters and run community centers for displaced Yemenis. These efforts alone won’t resolve this crisis. But without the UN—backed by governments around the world that want to see a political solution to the violence in Yemen—these glimmers of light would surely go dark.”

Following the event, Eliot Engel met with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to discuss a host of international issues, including the critical need to address climate change.

Eliot Engel believes the U.S. should be the global leader in reducing carbon emissions and developing a green economy.