President Bush Exchanges Toasts at U.N. General Assembly Dinner United Nations General Assembly New York, New York Fact sheet In Focus: Global Diplomacy 7:45 P.M. EDT SECRETARY GENERAL BAN KI-MOON: Distinguished head of state and government; distinguished ministers; Mr. President of General Assembly; Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen; dear friends. Welcome to the United Nation More.. s. I think of this as an annual family reunion. We meet once in this house, home to all nations, to discuss our common concerns to lay out our priorities to chart a way forward. This year, as I told the General Assembly this morning, our family has multiple crises to confront. That makes our U.N. more indispensable than ever. We may have different positions and perspectives on the issues before us, but we all have one thing in common: A stake in global solutions toward indisputably global problems. Such solutions can be provided only by the United Nations, the world's only universal institutions. In this way, our shared interest is also our self-interest. Whether we are talking about climate change or terrorism or threats to human health, we all live with the consequences of these challenges. We all need to invest in common approaches to address them. I think we all know this in principle; the hard part is remembering it when we need to put it in practice in the heat of negotiations, when the temptation is to stick to an entrenched position. That is why it is so heartening to see the high level of representation in this room. As Secretary General of the United Nations, I really appreciate your taking time amidst your very heavy state affairs. You know you can afford to compromise, and this is the real test of your leadership. Excellencies, let me say a special thanks -- even though there are so many leaders here -- to President Bush, who is attending his last General Assembly as a head of state of the host country to the United Nations. Mr. Presi...