Leaders plead for unity at UN amid coronavirus strain

King Salman, of Saudi Arabia, is seen on a video screen in Conference Room 2 remotely addressing the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly (AP)

European leaders have criticised a collective failure to vanquish the coronavirus pandemic, telling the UN General Assembly that the time has come for countries to reinvent international cooperation.

This year’s unusual work-from-home General Assembly – with leaders communicating only in pre-recorded speeches – comes as Covid-19 cases escalate in many regions but especially in Europe, where some of the most advanced hospitals in some of the world’s richest countries are again under strain.