The 75th session of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly opened on Tuesday as the world faces unprecedented challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic, which has dealt a crushing blow to the global economy.

The General Assembly is the main deliberative, supervisory and review body of the UN, which is composed of 193 member states. The General Assembly holds a regular session between September and December each year, usually lasting a week.

For decades, world leaders travel to New York to attend the UN General Assembly, discussing issues that affect the entire human community, such as climate change, human rights, poverty, world peace, international law and sustainable development. However, the itineraries of the world's top minds might be interrupted by coronavirus this year.

Regular sessions of the General Assembly are generally divided into two phases: the general debate and member states discussing topics on the agenda. During the general debate stage, representatives of the UN member states can express their views on a number of international issues. 

The UN Security Council bears the responsibility for maintaining international peace and security. It is one of the main organs of the UN. The UN Security Council has 15 members, among which China, France, Russia, Britain and the United States are permanent members, and the remaining 10 are non-permanent members.

Founded in 1945, the current UN headquarters in New York became operational in 1952. Marking the 75th anniversary of the UN, a seminar dedicated to the 2030 sustainable development goals (SDGs) and China's experience in poverty alleviation was held in Beijing on Wednesday, with most of the participants marking their presence online.

About 140 former political leaders, representatives from international organizations and think tanks from 39 countries and regions attended the seminar, discussing how China's poverty reduction work could facilitate the progress of sustainable development.

In the past four decades, China has lifted around 700 million people out of poverty. In 2020, China vows to eliminate poverty completely, aiming to meet the UN's goal of poverty alleviation 10 years ahead of schedule.

According to the UN Charter, the secretary-general is the "chief executive" of the UN and must first be recommended by the Security Council and then appointed by the General Assembly. In the 75 years since its founding, the UN has had nine secretaries-general, with Antonio Guterres being the current one.