First Lady Melania Trump To Chair Un Security Council Meeting

NEW YORK, March 2 (Bernama-dpa) -- The United States (US) First Lady, Melania Trump, is to chair a meeting of the UN Security Council in New York on Monday, reported German Press Agency (dpa).

The meeting of the most powerful UN body is scheduled to begin at 3 pm (2000 GMT) and will focus on children, technology and education in conflict situations, according to the White House.

The spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres called the move "a sign of the importance the US attaches to the Security Council and the issue at hand."

Melania Trump will be the first wife of a US president ever to chair such a meeting.

The US takes over the rotating presidency of the most important UN body in March, which involves chairing the meetings.

UN ambassadors or government representatives usually lead the meetings of the 15-member body.

The appearance comes against the backdrop of tense relations between President Donald Trump's administration and the UN.

UN figures suggest the US owes the organisation billions of dollars.

At the same time, Trump has repeatedly criticised it as "ineffective," has withdrawn the US from several UN institutions and international agreements, and most recently presented his own initiatives, such as the Board of Peace.

--BERNAMA-dpa