Remarks by Ravi Batra, Hosted by Permanent Mission of Georgia to the United Nations “2024 Diwali Stamp – The Power of One Awards” a/k/a The “Oscars of Diplomacy” 

“United Nations, the Vatican of Hope, is More Important Than Ever!”

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Delegates Dining Room, U.N.

3:30pm – 5:30pm; 6 December 2024

I.

Thank you very much dear David Bakradze, for your principled leadership and stewardship, along with every Speaker who is personally invested in promoting diplomatic excellence: dear Harold (UNSC, Ghana), Dennis (PGA78 Trinidad & Tobago), Harish (India), Omar via Hanaa (Morocco), Paula (Ecosoc Pres, Chile), Aida (our Goddaughter Iman) (Kyrgyzstan), Sophie (Eritrea), Teburoro via Keina (Kiribati), and Kairat (our Goddaughter Ameliya) (Kazakhstan). We are missing dear Miguel Moratinos, head of UNAOC and Spain’s former FM, as he is in Fez being honored by Morocco and my brother Omar Hilale. 

I.A.

*Amongst us today, is Amb. Darja Bavdaz-Kuret, who has served as Slovenia’s P.R. and was a Speaker at prior Award ceremonies. So, I yield the floor to dear Darja, as a hat-tip to her as family, and as Melania Trump is Slovenia’s gift to America.

**Let me also acknowledge some American milestones in our midst: Senior Federal Judge George B. Daniels, Appellate Justice Deborah A. Dowling, Justice Milton Tingling, Justice Kathie E. Davis, Judge Kris Singh, Mayor Ernie Davis, Karl and Faye Rodney, with whom we share dear Nick Perry, America’s current Ambassador to Jamaica, to name a few. In addition, a great diplomat celebrating his 20 years of service in the UN is our dear friend, Minister-Ambassador Riyad Mansour, a champion of Hope. 

On Saturday March 4, 1865, 159 years ago, President Abraham Lincoln ruled over a divided nation, and he concluded his Second Inaugural Address with a pledge – that I paraphrase – as it is what’s needed to effectuate the high Ideals enshrined in the UN Charter: 

“With malice towards none, with charity for all, 

with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, 

let us strive on to finish the work we are in, 

to bind up the world’s wounds, to care for the soldier who shall have borne the battle and for the widow and his orphan too, 

to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.”

Now, President Donald Trump, as POTUS 47, is “The Prince” in Mark Twain’s Prince and the Pauper. He is focused, as every sovereign ought to, on making their own country great again. Given the precarious geopolitical mess, he has the added burden to help heal the world’s wounds, and as Lincoln pledged, “to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.” That means NO to Cold Wars, NO to Hot Wars, and NO to Allies vs Axis.

In Rome, as it is with America, it must always be: Strength and Honor. But, Honor isn’t a title, but means we, as Americans, must honor our Word.

Diplomacy is more vital now, then ever before. Those who died in Hiroshima and Nagasaki demand that Diplomacy must be endless, in place of our endless wars. So, permit me to acknowledge many dozens of nations who co-sponsor these Awards by singling out the President of Ethiopia, dear Taye As-tike Sel-assie who personally co-sponsored these Awards. 

Today, we are chasing Mach 10 Hypersonics and Generative AI for national advantage, even as the latter is a real “Black Hole” that could enslave all of humanity to serve the ever-smarter Generative AI.

World class leaders and diplomats tell the truth. Always. We need to rediscover respectful humility to be one human family, rather than find differences to self-divide based upon race, region, religion and economics. Mother Nature knows no boundaries and holds us all responsible, without pardon or exception. We need to come together.

United Nations is the perfect venue, for Humanity to save itself as SG António Guterres has proven by his tireless efforts, be it to try to stop Wars or to honor Mother Nature. It’s a tough fight, and the SG deserves our support. The Mission of the U.N. is priceless, as I see it as the Vatican of Hope.

On a personal note, I’m grateful to the tireless dear Linda Thomas Greenfield, who is exiting out as President of the SC, even as I warmly welcome Elise Stefanik as our next P.R. Its worth recalling that the United States is already a real life-United Nations, for we are living proof of 

E Pluribus Unum. If you knew America and her exceptional birth intimately, you too would love America as I do.

II.

Now, assuming my role as Moderator for the 2024 Diwali Stamp – The Power of One Awards, I must admit each year is more special than the last, as it builds on diplomatic greatness already celebrated, and together, all of us, add more “world class diplomats” to the Pantheon of Diplomats. The 2024 World Class Diplomats are: 

H.E. Juan Ramon de la Fuente, a psychiatrist who has improved global mental health, Frm P.R. of Mexico to the UN Security Council; now Foreign Minister of Mexico;

*For his principled leadership to help form a more perfect, peaceful and secure world for all.

Dear Juan Ramon may have made Mexico proud, but we are more proud of him!

H.E. Ferit Hoxha, Former P.R. of Albania to the UN, repeatedly, and a Member of the Security Council; now, Amb. to E.U. and the Kingdom of Belgium

*For his principled leadership to help form a more perfect, peaceful and secure world for all.

Dear Ferit may have made Albania proud, but we are more proud of him!

H.E. Tarek Ladab, Permanent Representative of Tunisia to the UN, 

and served as Member of the UN Security Council. 

His smiling eyes are a weapon for peace.

*For his principled leadership to help form a more perfect, peaceful and secure world for all.

H.E. Olof Skoog, Frm P.R. of Sweden and Head of Delegation of E.U. to UN; 

now EU Special Representative for Human Rights. 

He also served, as dear David Bakradze does now, as the Lead Organizer of these very Awards for a two-year Term in 2022 and 2023. 

*For his principled leadership to help form a more perfect, peaceful and secure world for all.

III. Family Picture – 

Awardees, 

Speakers and Family (Angela, Neal, Ameliya, Aigerim, Kathy Gulati, Marco, Binaya, Darja), 

Co-Sponsors, 

All P.R.s and Spouses like Gheorghe Leuca and Alya, Dushko Uzunovski and Natasha, Joan Forner Rovira, Agnes Chimbiri-Molande and Maria Michail; High Level UN Officials, such as Rabab Fatima, Larbi Djacta, Boguslaw Winid; and VIPs like JJ. Daniels, Dowling, Tingling, Singh, Davidson, Mayor Davis, Frank Seddio and James Blain \ec\dc\Ravi Batra Remarks – 2024 Diwali Stamp – Power of One Awards.120624

 

Ravi Batra, Esq.
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Ravi Batra, starting September 11, 2021, is a publisher ofThe America Times Company Ltd., and since January 2022, is the Editor-in-Chief. He is a member of the National Press Club, in Washington D.C., and a member of its "Freedom of the Press" and "International Correspondents" Teams/Committees.

A member of the bar since 1981, he is the head of a boutique law firm in Manhattan, The Law Firm of Ravi Batra, P.C., that handles complex constitutional, sovereignty, torture, civil and criminal cases, representing governments, corporates and individuals, with landmark legal victories, including, libel in fiction, in “Batra v. Dick Wolf.” He is Chairman & CEO, Greenstar Global Energy Corp., King Danylo of Galicia International Ltd., Mars & Pax Advisors, Ltd., Chairman of National Advisory Council on South Asian Affairs, and since September 2021, Advisor for Legal and Humanitarian Affairs to the Permanent Mission of Georgia to the United Nations. He is invited by various governments to address High Level Ministerial events, including, on Counter-Terrorism, including, Astana (Nur-Sultan), Dushanbe, Minsk and Delhi. He has testified in Congress as an invitee of the Chair, U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, and interacted with U.S. Department of State from 1984 -1990, and then again, from 2006, during the tenures of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, Rex Tillerson, Mike Pompeo and Antony Blinken.

He has served as Commissioner of New York State Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE), Trustee on New York State IOLA Board, New York State Judicial Screening Committee for the Second Judicial Department, City Bar’s Judicial Committee, Vice-Chair of Kings County Democratic County Committee’s Independent Judicial Screening Committee for the then-2nd Judicial Department of Brooklyn and Staten Island, Chair of NYSTLA’ Judicial Independence Committee, with many more bar leadership roles, including, NYSBA’s House of Delegates for four years. He has served as Advisor for Legal & Human Rights Affairs to the Permanent Mission of Ukraine post-annexation of Crimea till 2021, and Legal Advisor to numerous nations’ permanent missions to the U. N. since 2009, including, India, Pakistan, Honduras and Malta. He has served: as Global Special Counsel to The Antonov Company in Ukraine, a state-owned company, and was registered with the Justice Dept pursuant to FARA; and as Special Global Advisor to Rector/President of both - National Aviation University of Ukraine and National Technical University of Ukraine/KPI. He remains involved in geopolitics and public policy since the mid-1980's, starting with being on House Speaker Tip O’Neill’s Speaker’s Club and appointed member of NACSAA during President Ronald Reagan’s tenure. In 1988, he was part of U.S. Attorney General Ed Meese’s Delegation to Japan to resolve bilateral trade imbalance. He regularly interacts with the multilateral diplomatic community, and during the High Level UNGA Debate, with heads of State/Government. He is sought for his views as a speaker and writer. 

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